Game Over
by Heart of a Dixon
Summary: What chance does 16 year old Kaiya stand at winning over a guy as tough as Daryl Dixon? And how are her odds affected by the fact that a single wrong move could mean game over? DarylXOC Please don't let the age difference throw you off. It will make more sense if you read it. Give it a chance.
1. Where Were You?

I woke up early the morning the world went to shit. I felt the need to get a head start on the shittiness of the life to come. Not really; no one could have predicted what was going to happen to me or everyone else that fateful afternoon.

I rose from my bed, as my mom yelled up the stairs to me. My bed suddenly felt a thousand times more soft, warm, and all around comfortable as I remembered the pain-in-my-ass Spanish exam I had to take today.

Damn school.

Damn tests.

Damn dog! "Shut up!" I yelled to my mother's German Shepherd, Donkey, who was barking his head off downstairs. Yes, my mom has a dog named Donkey. I named the dark-ish brown and black dog when I was just 4 years old and he was a puppy. I thought it hilarious at the time, seeing as the dog was quite obviously NOT a donkey.

I threw my thick purple comforter off my body and sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

My feet hit the wood floor with a small thud and I walked over to my closet, pulling open the door and inspecting myself in the full-length mirror hanging on the inside. Ugh… I hate Mondays. My hair was all over the place and I think I was starting to get a zit on the left side of my forehead. Sometimes I hate being a teenager.

I know you may be thinking "wow, this girl is really cynical/pessimistic/any other word describing a negative attitude toward anything and all," but let me set you straight before we delve any more into the day my whole world turned upside down: I am. I am very distrustful of human nature and have a sarcastic sense of humor, biting back twice as hard at anyone who barks a command, sneers an insult, or even mutters a word behind my back. But I was also very immature and found many things funny that I really shouldn't. People looked at me oddly when I laughed at stuff I knew was inappropriate and immature to laugh at, but my close friends understood the irregular thought process.

I sighed and tried to smooth down my crazy black hair. When I realized the attempt was futile without a hair brush and some hair product or another, I stomped grumpily away from the mirror and into my bathroom. My hair was really long, coming down to my rear. I sometimes sat on it by accident which really hurt. I decided to pull my hair up into a high ponytail, shortening its length the tiniest bit so it only came down to my lower back. When my hair was decent, I went to my closet and chose a black T-shirt I got from a concert my dad took me to for my birthday about two years ago and a pair of blue jeans. I fastened my belt around my pants and pulled on a pair of black skater shoes. They were the most comfortable shoes in the world, my Vans. I loved them to death and wouldn't trade them for any other pair of shoes ever.

I didn't bother putting on makeup. 1) it was only a half day of school today for exams and 2) I didn't normally wear makeup anyway. It was a pain in the ass and who was I trying to impress anyway? Any guy who liked me with makeup should like me just as well without it. There were quite a few guys in my Sophomore class who made their affections for me very obvious, but they were all creeps.

"Kaiya! You might want to leave soon!" my mom called up from the kitchen.

I sighed heavily and stood, yanking my bag off of its hanging spot around my bedpost in a terrible display of teenage angst. I trudged down the stairs and turned into the kitchen where my mom was wearing a white apron and an oven mitt over her hand, pulling a cookie sheet out of the oven.

I sniffed the air, loving the chocolate scent the cookies gave off. I ripped a paper towel off the roll and grabbed two scorching hot cookies up into it, pecking my mom on my cheek before a hasty retreat to the door.

"I've got work today after school!" I threw over my shoulder.

My mom nodded as I grabbed my car keys out of the tin on the stand by the door. I waved one last time before running out to my black truck.

It was a nice big '99 Chevy Z71. The tires didn't necessarily have to be that big, but I liked surprising the boys admiring my truck when they saw that the driver was a girl. It looked like it was new still; I took good care of it. I had helped my dad work on it since I was 10 and when I got my driver's license, my dad handed me the keys with a large smile on his face. It had always been my dream to drive that car and I was ecstatic.

I was 16 with everything besides a stupid Spanish exam and a zit on the left side of my forehead going right for me when the world went to shit.

Where were you?

* * *

><p><strong>Tell me what you guys think! Review and we'll see if I continue :) MERRY CHRISTMAS! <strong>


	2. Killer Spanish Test

I pulled up into the school, finishing off the last of my cookie and brushing the crumbs off of my face. I got out of the truck and jogged up to the glass doors of the high school.

Everyone was buzzing about some kind of bug making its way around school. But from others, I heard it was everywhere. Not just the school, but the whole world was suffering from some weird fever. Doctors didn't know what to diagnose it as and a few people had already died of it already.

I tried to ignore the sickie talk and made my way towards the Spanish classroom. There were supposed to be like 10 people taking this exam at this time, but only 2 people other than me were actually in the room. I took a seat and started taking the exam, a terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach.

* * *

><p>It was about half-way through test-taking time and I was still only on question 6. What the hell is a "tengo"? Why don't I ever pay attention in class? I shook my head and tried to think back to our lessons.<p>

But my thinking was interrupted by a deep gurgling snarl somewhere to my right.

I looked over at Troy, the kid beside me. He was asleep, so I figured it must've been him.

But then the Spanish teacher, Miss Hanset, spoke up, "Jeremy, are you all right?"

I looked over at Jeremy who was just on the other side of Troy. His face was down, but from the side, I could see blood dripping from his mouth. The snarls seemed to emanating from him. Was he having a seizure? Was he having a heart attack? Or was he just bleeding profusely from his main orifice for no apparent reason?

"Jeremy?" I asked quietly from where I was sitting.

His head snapped up, making a horrid cracking sound. His eyes, blood-shot in the whites, contrasting terrifyingly against the clouded-over blue of his irises, focused in on me. His skin was deathly pale and blood was still seeping from his mouth.

I jumped from my seat, falling onto the ground. "What the fuck?" I yelled. I knew normally I would've been reprimanded for my foul language by Miss Hanset, but she was seeing the same thing I was.

She backed up, hitting the bookshelf behind her.

Jeremy stood, seeming to limp and came out from behind his desk. His movements were awkward and he didn't seem like he knew what to do with his arms.

The bump Miss Hanset made against the bookshelf caused his attention to be drawn to her. He watched her with what I could only describe as hunger. I wanted to get up from my seat on the ground and bolt from the room, but my legs weren't working.

Just as Jeremy was about to lunge forward over the desk, Troy snorted in his sleep. Jeremy looked down to Troy's body sleeping just beside him.

I had an inkling of what might happen next, but I didn't believe it until I saw it and even then I had trouble accepting it.

Jeremy bent down and grabbed Troy's hair in his hand, pulling his head up by the brown locks.

Troy's eyes opened slowly. "What are you doing, man?" he asked, confused. Jeremy's hold on his hair tightened and Troy winced. "Hey, let go, man!"

Then Jeremy sunk his teeth into Troy's neck, cutting off all further arguments.

Miss Hanset screamed and left the room.

My legs decided to listen finally and I ran out of the classroom, spotting another of the Jeremy-like monsters at the end of the hall, munching on a girl in her Junior year by the name of Sally. I never really liked Sally. But still, it was terrifying and I felt a little sad upon seeing it.

I dashed out of the doors of the school and into the parking lot. I started my truck up and left the school far behind me. I knew where I was going, but I wasn't sure why. I turned onto the familiar street and pulled up on the curb, getting an eerie feeling as I noticed that no one was out I the streets.

The lights of the Chinese food restaurant I worked at were all off, but I had a key so I unlocked the door and slipped inside, locking the door behind me just in case.

The owner of the restaurant was Korean and not Chinese so it confused me as to why he had opened a Chinese food restaurant in the first place. Mr. Kang, the owner, had been good friends with my father since they were in college. He had gotten me this job when I was 14, busing tables.

His son, Glenn, was 4 years older than me, but he had been my best friend since we were infants. Our dads had thrown us together a lot when we were younger and they would have man time. Glenn also worked here when he wasn't delivering pizzas, but no one was in here now.

"Mr. Kang?" I called out, cautiously peeking in the dining room area. "Glenn?"

I heard the bell above the door ring and turned, heart beating fast.

But it was just Glenn, shoving his key ring in his pocket. "Hey," Glenn said, waving.

I waved weakly back and leaned against the wall, sliding down it until my butt hit the ground. I groaned and closed my eyes, trying to block the image of Troy getting chomped on out of my head.

Glenn rushed over, kneeling down. "The Spanish exam wasn't _that_ bad, was it?" he asked, not joking in the slightest.

I opened my eyes and cracked a tiny smile, unable (even in my current predicament) to resist the joke that came out. "Killer."

He gave me an odd look and then threw a glance around the inside of the restaurant. "Where is everyone? There's no one here, no one in the streets, and there was no one at the pizza place either."

I shrugged, looking over at the main office door. I struggled to get to my feet and thought I heard something scraping against the floor on the other side of that door. I narrowed my eyes at it and cocked my head to the side as the door handle jiggled, but didn't turn all the way.

"That must be my dad," Glenn said, strutting over to the door and opening it.

"Glenn, don't-"

What used to be Mr. Kang stumbled out of the office, covered in blood and bite marks. He held his hands out for Glenn, snarling. Even in the darkness of the restaurant, Glenn could tell something was terribly wrong.

"What the-?" he stumbled backwards and tripped over the carpet, landing on his back.

Mr. Kang tried to lean down and grab and presumably eat him, but I picked up the closest thing to me, a telephone, and ripped its cords, hurling it straight at my boss's face. Most people would have loved to do that due to a deep hatred of their boss, but it pained me to do this. That man had been like a second father to me.

It hit him right in the face, causing him to stumble back into the room.

I ran forward, shutting the door, but his hand had gotten between the door and the doorjamb. It was wriggling around, trying to grab hold of anything human. I pushed on the door, but all that came from putting all of my 120 pounds of weight on it was a satisfying crack. I wanted to throw up, but I held it in. I grabbed hold of the hand and pushed it through the slim opening in the door and shut it, locking it from the outside with the key I still had in my hand.

When the door was locked, I took a few steps back, tears blurring my vision.

Glenn was sitting on the floor, still staring in horror at the door and breathing hard. "What the hell was that?"

I shook my head. "I think… I think it was a zombie."

* * *

><p><strong>More reviews = More updates Tell me whatcha think! :) <strong>


	3. Yarn and Fruit Loops

Glenn gathered a few things from around the restaurant (fortune cookies, money that we later found out was no use keeping, and then we broke the legs off of a few chairs, hoping that would serve as a good weapon until we got real ones) and then we were off. We hopped in my truck, speeding off to the closest gun shop.

The glass of the windows and doors had been busted in, so we assumed someone had already raided this place. We still stepped in, though, to search for anything that could be useful. There were only 3 more guns left and 4 boxes of rounds for each. But, on a wall to the side, we found some large hunting knifes. There were 6 so we split them evenly, 3 for each. Glenn didn't know much about using guns and my dad had taught me to use them on our many hunting trips, so Glenn took one shotgun and I took the pistol and the rifle, ditching the chair legs.

We ran back out to the truck with our spoils and narrowly avoided a few of the zombies that Glenn had nicknamed "walkers" that were leaking out onto the streets. In a few hours, Atlanta would be completely overrun.

We made a quick stop by Glenn's house on the way to mine. When we got to my house, Glenn came in with me, guarding me since my parents had both been home. Glenn's mother had died when we were both very young and we had already seen his father today, so we knew his house was probably clear. I was glad Glenn came in with me, because without him, I would've been dead.

I opened the door slowly, walking into the house. I didn't dare say a word. My parents might already be one of those things, I had accepted that on the way here. But that didn't prepare me for actually seeing it.

My mom was standing in the kitchen, foot bent at an awkward angle with her back to us. Her ear-length red hair was messy, which was odd for my mom. She couldn't stand being anything less than immaculate.

I ran forward, not registering the odd posture or the untidy hair, just happy to see my mom. I grabbed her shoulders and spun her around, hugging her before I could see her face. Maybe if I had stopped to take two seconds to look at her, I wouldn't have almost died. But I didn't.

She groaned in my ear, and I thought that was it.

But Glenn yanked me out of her hands and stabbed straight into her forehead with the knife.

I was in complete shock for only a moment, tears falling from my eyes like water from a faucet. Then another groan was heard and the door beside me that led to the garage creaked open. I already knew what to expect, but it still hurt to see.

Glenn started to hold up his knife, but I put a hand over his wrist. "I've got this," I muttered.

He nodded hesitantly, frowning.

I grabbed my knife as I looked up into my dead father's face.

His jeans were ripped and splattered with blood, his camouflage baseball cap on his head as it always was. Blood was dripping down his mouth and it coated a crescent-shaped mark on his forearm. He shuffled forward, eyes glinting demonically.

I sniffed and tried to soak up the tears and be strong. "I'm sorry, daddy." I drove the blade of the knife deep into his brain, ceasing the excited chattering of his teeth and the squelching groans he made. I pulled the knife out and wiped it on my pants, saying, "We've gotta hurry and get out of the city."

He nodded and we ran upstairs to my room. Glenn closed the door behind us and I rushed over to my closet, pulling out an athletics bag I had used when I was on a dance team in middle school.

I stuffed random things into it as Glenn inspected the room. He hadn't been over in a few years, and my room had changed, though the rest of the house remained the same.

I shoved some clothes into the bag: jeans, shorts, T-shirts, tank tops, socks, underwear, bras (the last ones with discretion so I didn't draw Glenn's attention to it). Then I moved into the bathroom and grabbed medicine, scraping it all off the countertop and into the bag.

Glenn was looking at all the stuff on my dresser. "You kept this?" he asked, smiling and holding up a necklace made of pastel green yarn and fruit loops. Glenn had made it for me on my 4th birthday.

I nodded, blushing slightly. "Of course I kept it." I felt kinda silly for keeping stuff like that, but they held a place in my heart.

I grabbed the necklace from Glenn's hand and pulled it over my head. "And I still wear it, too," I joked, going through some of the stuff on top of my dresser.

I put deodorant and a few pictures in the bag and noticed the house was devoid of something. Barking.

I walked across the hall to my parents room and found Donkey cowering under the bed. I grabbed his collar and pulled him out of the house, muttering how much of a coward he was. Glenn followed with my bag strung around his shoulders. I put Donkey in the back seat and then went back upstairs to grab a pillow and my purple comforter. Finally, we left, speeding out of town and passing tons of walkers on the way.

I was just glad we were in a truck and they were walking. Although I wished they hadn't started.


	4. The Dixon Boys

I had forgotten about my backpack in the truck when we had gone to my house, but now I had two bags to carry supplies in.

It was getting dark now and we were on a highway, blocked by cars. Everyone was trying to get out of the city.

I groaned and slammed my head repeatedly on the steering wheel when we pulled up.

Glenn pulled my head back to prevent me from banging my forehead on the wheel anymore. He smirked at me and said, "Come on, you cant afford to do any more damage to your face."

Even though I knew he was joking, I stuck my tongue out at him. I put the truck in park and shut it off, opening the door. I hopped down from what was quite a large height for someone of my size. I was 16 and still 5'4". Damn Irish blood.

"Kaiya?" Glenn asked, coming around the back of the truck to stand beside me.

"Yeah?" I responded, leaning back against the truck.

"Do you think we'll be okay?"

I looked up at him.

He was asking for reassurance from me? He was older! But I supposed I had always been more mature than him (believe it or not) when placed in adult situations. I may have an immature sense of humor, but when it came down to it, I was probably the most mature 16 year old in the world. Probably the only 16 year old now.

I frowned. I looked Glenn straight in the eyes and said firmly, "Yes." I really did believe we'd make it through this. For a little while at least.

Glenn smiled and threw an arm around my shoulders. I leaned against him, suddenly more tired than I had ever been in my whole life.

Donkey was in the back seat asleep, which was surprising; there was an awful lot of honking going on. But most of it was from farther up the crowd of cars.

A honk just behind us made me jump. "Hey! Lets git a move on!" A thick southern drawl yelled from the blue and white truck behind us.

I rolled my eyes. "Damn hicks," I muttered, which had Glenn laughing. "What?" I asked, giving him a look.

He just chuckled and said, "Never figured you for the racist type, being the best friend of a Korean and all."

I shook my head at him and rolled my eyes. "Backwoods country boy isn't a race and due to recent circumstances, I don't exactly have the patience for people like Bo and Luke Duke over there," I said, nodding in the direction of the two cowboy-looking men in the front seats of the blue and white truck behind us.

I couldn't see their faces, but both were obviously men and very backwoods men at that.

Glenn chuckled and then the slamming of two car doors could be heard behind us. I looked up at the moon, hoping the two guys from that truck wouldn't be coming over to converse. Unfortunately, I had very shitty social luck.

"Hey, what's th' hold up?" the older-looking of the two yelled to the cars ahead, standing just in front of us and watching the line of cars before of us.

"Everyone wants to get out of this hellhole," I said, keeping my tone neutral.

The older of the two turned to look at me then and I cursed my big mouth. If I had kept quiet, he might not have noticed me.

Glenn withdrew his arm from my shoulders and looked like he was trying to muster the courage to protect me if these two tried anything.

They were close enough now that I could see their faces. The oldest had short, light colored hair and a weathered face. His jaw was slightly slack, as though he hadn't been sober a minute of his life. He seemed about in his 30s and the younger of the two looked about mid to late 20s.

The younger had dark hair that came to the middle of his forehead. He also had a stubbly goatee growing in and the deepest blue eyes I thought I had ever seen. His eyes darted over to me and I looked down, feeling my face heat up.

The oldest walked forward, standing next to his brother who was leaning against a now-abandoned car beside us.

"Merle Dixon." He held his hand out which kinda surprised me. I hadn't pegged him for a hand-shaker.

I reached forward and shook his hand, gripping it as tightly as I could without seeming like I was trying too hard to look tough. "Kaiya Caston."

Merle grunted. "Wha' kinda name is tha'?"

I rose a brow at him. "What kinda name is Merle?"

He gave a "fair-enough" look and nodded. "This here's my baby brother Daryl." He patted the younger one on the shoulder.

He just nodded to me.

I tilted my head in Glenn's direction (who was looking very awkward and uncomfortable). "That's Glenn."

Merle scowled, but Daryl nodded at him, no emotions showing on his face.

The wind picked up, coldness surrounding us. I shivered and decided to take my hair out of its ponytail; maybe it would keep my back warm. I pulled the ponytail out of my hair, conscious of the two Dixons eyes on me. I watched the cars ahead as I shook my hair out with my hands.

"Awful lotta hair," I heard an unfamiliar voice say quietly.

I looked over and thought it was Daryl since I hadn't heard him speak yet.

I nodded politely, not sure how to respond to that or if I was even supposed to respond. I turned my attention back to the vehicles blocking the road.

"Yer awfully short, ain'tcha?" Merle asked, having to look down to see me.

I looked up at him. "I guess so."

"Not much of a talker, huh?" he mumbled, turning back around.

Merle and Glenn both had their eyes on the cars ahead, but I had my sights trained on pavement in front of my feet. And out of the corner of my eye, I could see Daryl throwing me some strange glances.

I wasn't sure whether or not I liked these boys yet.

Merle spoke up after a few minutes of silence. He gestured between Glenn and I. "You two some kinda interracial couple or sumthin'?"

Glenn and I blushed and looked at each other before awkwardly refusing. We had gotten that for years. People always thought we were dating.

"No, we've been best friends since he could walk," I explained.

My odd wording seemed to catch their attention. "Whatcha mean since _he_ could walk? You couldn't walk when ya was his age?" Merle asked, he and Daryl giving us a confused look.

"I could when I was his age, but we aren't the same age."

This confused them further. "Whatcha mean?" Daryl asked.

"He's 20, I'm 16."

Their eyes widened. "16?" Merle asked, quite loudly.

I nodded. It was my turned to be confused.

"Well, damn…" Merle muttered.

I didn't know what he was going on about, so I just shrugged and stood on the step up under the door of the truck so I could peek in the back window and check on Donkey.

"He still asleep?" Glenn asked.

I nodded and hopped back down.

"Got a kid in thur? Ya some kinda teen mom er sumthin'?" Merle asked, looking astounded.

I shook my head, smiling. "No it's a dog."

He nodded in understanding.

They weren't that bad, aside from Merle being kind of nosey.

Screams were heard up the road. Everyone jumped, standing straight and alert. I walked to the front of the truck and looked to my right.

There was Atlanta. But the whole city was on fire.

"They're dropping napalm in the streets!" A male voice ahead of us shouted. He and a woman with a young boy walked up to the car in front of us. The woman and boy got in, but the man stopped and looked up at us. He jogged over to us. "I'm officer Shane Walsh. I don't know what's goin' on, but we gotta get outta here. You can follow me." He didn't give us any time to argue or ask questions. He just ran back to his vehicle and got in.

"You think we can trust him?" Glenn asked.

"Never was one fer trustin' pigs." Merle muttered.

"Do we have a choice?" I asked, opening the door and hopping in.

"That's YOUR truck?" Merle asked, astounded once more.

I rolled my eyes. "Can we please talk about this later?" I didn't give him time to answer as I shut the door and drove after officer Shane Walsh.

Glenn clutched his head in his hands and groaned, "What are we doing?"

I glanced in the rearview mirror to see the Dixon brothers following us. "Surviving."


	5. The Quarry

DARYL'S POV:

I drove after that girl, Kaiya's, truck. We were on some kind of dirt road and there seemed to be a few more cars following after us.

"What'chu thank o' girly up thur?" Merle asked from beside me.

I kept my eyes straight ahead and thought about it. She was pretty and the only thing about her that looked 16 was her height and even that didn't even look 16. More like 10. I almost chuckled, but I knew what Merle would think if I did that.

"She's got lotsa hair, a weird name, a dog-"

Merle interrupted, "And a chink."

"And a nice truck," I finished.

Merle shook his head. "No, I mean what do ya THANK of her?"

"I thank she's 16."

That ceased all conversation. I knew Merle wasn't a pervert or anything, but he also wasn't one to pass up a pretty girl. I wondered which meant more to him. Would he rather be labeled as a child rapist or the guy with the hot chick? The thought worried me.

Kaiya's truck pulled to a stop on the edge of a large open area surrounded by trees. It looked like it must've been a campsite before. An old man in an RV passed by us and drove in, parking on the inside of the actual camping part. The rest of the vehicles were parked on the outskirts of the dirt and grass.

As we parked and started to get out of the truck, Merle started talking. "I gotta come up with some kinda nickname for 'er then. Cant call a rug rat sugar-tits can I?" I don't think he knew I heard him mumble, "Even if it is perty true."

I shook my head and got out of the truck. This was going to be a long apocalypse.

KAIYA'S POV:

Shane led us to a small campsite beside a quarry.

I parked the truck and leaned my head against the headrest for a moment with my eyes closed. I felt Glenn put his hand over mine and I opened my eyes. I looked over at him and gave him a small smile.

He smiled back. "We'll make it."

I nodded, filled with hope at his three words. We would make it.

We both got out of the truck and started walking to the circle of people beside the RV.

"Everyone got a tent?" Shane asked, looking around at everyone.

A few people raised their hands tentatively, indicating that they didn't.

"Alright, those that don't, sleep in the RV, everyone else pitch your tents close by. Dale and I will be taking watch tonight." He nodded over to an old man that reminded me of my grandpa. I couldn't see too much besides his bucket hat and his Hawaiian shirt, though.

Everyone started to disperse.

I heard Merle call, "Hey, Baby doll!"

I turned to see him looking straight at me. I saw Glenn grimace out of the corner of my eye.

"Ya gotta tent?"

I started to say no, I hadn't thought to grab one when packing up, but Glenn shouted back, "Yeah, she does." and threw his arm around my shoulders.

I smiled gratefully up at him.

He winked down at me and smiled, bringing me back to the truck.

As we walked past, I heard Merle mutter "Damn chink." I hoped Glenn didn't hear. I didn't have a problem with Merle back on the highway, but my opinion of him was quickly going down.

Glenn reached in the bed of my truck and pulled out a tent he had stashed back there when I hadn't been paying attention, I guessed. I helped him set up the tent, but it took us a little longer than I thought it would. By the time the tent was up, I was ready to collapse from exhaustion.

I opened the back door of the truck and Donkey bounded out, running straight to Glenn. Donkey was a rather well-behaved dog and he knew when to be quiet which would be a good thing if there were walkers all over now. I hoped this spot would be safe as I grabbed my comforter and pillow and went inside the tent. I threw them down onto the floor of the tent and began straightening them out.

Then I walked outside to see Glenn tying Donkey to a nearby tree with a length of rope.

"Thanks," I said, smiling at Donkey.

"No problem," Glenn said, standing up. "C'mon, lets get to sleep."

We started to make our way back to the tent, but then Shane intercepted us. "Wait, are you two sharing a tent?" Disapproval was clear in both his voice and his frown. "I thought he was 20 and you were 16."

"Who told you that?" I asked, surprised he knew our ages.

He jerked a thumb over his shoulder at the tent where Daryl was watching us. He looked down when I looked over at him.

"I heard one of the rednecks grumblin' about it."

I nodded. "Yeah, but he's like my big brother, don't worry," I said, wrapping an arm around Glenn's neck.

Glenn nodded.

Shane stared between us suspiciously and then hesitantly nodded and walked away.

I ripped away the red and orange baseball hat Glenn had on his head at all times and put it on my head, running into the tent.

"Give it back!" Glenn called, chasing after me.

When we were in the tent, he tackled me and began tickling my sides. I tried not to laugh too hard, but I was sure I failed. Eventually, Glenn snatched his hat back and stopped tickling me.

Soon after, I passed out under my familiar comforter. I was surprised I didn't have to cry myself to sleep that night, but I was so exhausted it wasn't necessary.

DARYL'S POV:

Officer Shane Walsh. That was what the cop introduced himself as. I didn't like him at all. Something about him had me on edge. And then he pointed at me over his shoulder. Kaiya looked up at me.

I looked down, trying not to make it obvious I had been watching their conversation. When I peeked back up, Kaiya had her arm around the Asian kid's neck and she was grinning. I bit my lip.

Shane walked away and they just stood there for a minute.

Then Kaiya grabbed his hat and put it on her own head, hightailing it back to the tent they were sharing. Glenn chased her down and when they disappeared inside the tent, I heard her laughing.

And he was 20? Maybe he was a pervert. But, then, she had said they had been friends since they were little. Maybe he was just a really immature 20 year old.

I shook my head. Whatever, none of my business.

"Ya gonna stay outside all night er ya gonna actually sleep?" Merle called from inside the tent.

I rolled my eyes with a sigh and went inside.


	6. Glenn's First Supply Run

KAIYA'S POV:

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of someone chopping up wood.

I rolled over, but Glenn wasn't there. I went into mini panic mode, then realized he was probably already outside.

I searched through my bag for a brush and brushed out my hair then started looking through my bag for clean clothes. I pulled on a pair of jeans and took my T-shirt off, about to pull a green tank top over my head.

But, before I could even get it on, someone opened the tent flap and stuck their head in. "Kaiya, they- Oh fuck!"

It was Daryl.

"What the fuck? Haven't you ever heard of knocking?" I yelled, trying to cover my exposed torso with the tank top.

He shielded his eyes and muttered, "How do ya knock on a fabric te- Never mind, the-uh… others, they sent me to get you."

I had the tank top on by the time he was done talking, so I said, "Its safe now. Thanks for comin' to get me."

He nodded, removing his hand from his face, but I could see his blush quite clearly and thought it quite endearing. His face was hard, not letting any emotion through. But that blush gave his embarassment away.

I pulled on my shoes and stood, walking out of the tent with him right behind me.

Everyone was standing around in a circle again, getting acquainted. Glenn was still nowhere to be seen.

I frowned, but made nice and introduced myself.

* * *

><p>It felt awkward being anywhere near Daryl for the rest of the day after I practically flashed him that morning. Thank God I at least had a bra on.<p>

I was secretly glad that he left to go hunting about an hour after all the introductions were made. After that little activity, I sat at a table with Amy and Andrea. We just sat and talked about what our lives had been like before all this.

I noticed Andrea looking oddly at something just over my shoulder.

I turned my head slightly and saw Daryl sitting on the open tailgate of his pickup and watching us. He looked down at a crossbow in his hands when I looked up at him. I turned back around, blushing.

What was it about me that Daryl felt the need to stare at? I bet it was the zit on my forehead. With my luck, it had probably grown to a massive size and alerted everyone that it was soon going to take control of my face and set up some kind of zit camp. I frowned at the thought. That would be just peachy.

"What's with him?" Andrea asked, looking at me and casting short glances over my shoulder at him.

I shrugged. "His brother can be a dick, but Daryl's not so bad. He's real quiet."

Andrea shook her head. "That's not what I meant."

I gave her a confused look.

She leaned forward across the table. "I meant what's with him? He's been watching you like a hawk all day."

I was shocked. "All day?"

She nodded.

"That's a little weird."

Amy and Andrea nodded in agreement.

"Isn't he like 28 or something?" Amy asked.

Andrea nodded her head. "I would say somewhere around there."

"I'm only 16." I said, not realizing it came out until Andrea said, "Guess the youngest Dixon has a thing for children." She stood up, about to walk away.

"Hey, I'm not a child!" I yelled after her, blushing when I saw Daryl walking past, going into the woods. He gave me a funny look but kept walking. I blushed and banged my head on the table. I picked my head up off the table and groaned.

"Hey, don't worry, Andrea calls me a kid all the time," Amy said.

"But you're 24!" I yelled.

She quirked a smile and said, "Daryl is kinda hot, though, huh?"

I widened my eyes at her. "Amy!"

"What?" she giggled.

I looked over to where he was standing, scoping out the tree line. He had that black crossbow in his hand and rested up on his shoulder. He held himself with confidence. Now, in the sun I got a better look than I had last night in the darkness of the night with only the glare of headlights to aid my vision. His hair was dark, but it seemed it was almost a very dark blond. From here, I could tell his eyes were blue. The sleeves of his shirt were torn off, revealing large muscles tensed under a layer of tanned skin. I was looking at him from the side, so I could also see that he was very in shape.

He looked at us out of the corner of his eyes and we knew we'd been caught checking him out. We giggled and hid our faces with our hands, looking at each other with OMG expressions.

He lifted an eyebrow and raced off into the woods, going on his hunt.

"I guess he really is pretty hot," I told Amy quietly. I was surprised. I had never really been one for giggling and checking out boys, but I guess the world _had _ended…

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you guys for reading and reviewing, it means a lot! :) Hope you liked it (even though it is kinda short) <strong>


	7. Constants

KAIYA'S POV:

Daryl returned that night with a string of squirrels. After skinning them with Merle, he handed the line off to Lori who began stewing them, hardly expending a thanks to him.

By the time night fell, Glenn was back. He explained that he had gone into Atlanta for supplies. I punched him hard in the chest for leaving without at least telling me, but then hugged him, happy that he had come back alive and well.

The kids had enjoyed playing with Donkey all day and laughed when they learned his name.

We sat around a fire that night, eating squirrel off ceramic plates. Everyone laughed and swapped stories as the firelight washed over us in an yellow-orange glow, warming our skin and making us a little more comfortable out here in the wilderness. Everyone except Daryl and Merle who sat on their own by their tent.

I frowned as I peeked at them in my peripheral, but my attention was called back to the current conversation when Lori said, "What about you, Kaiya? What's up with you and Glenn?"

My eyes widened momentarily as I realized that even with the end of the world, people still suspected more than friendship between me and my Korean BFF. I looked to Glenn, but he shook his head and held his hands up, saying "You got this one" without actually using words.

I turned back to Lori and said, "We're just friends."

Everyone gave an understanding nod and made "ahh" noises, but I could tell they thought it was that kind of situation where you say your just friends but you're in denial because you actually secretly wish you were more than just friends. Yeah. This isn't one of those situations.

"No, seriously," I argued. "Glenn has been my best friend since I was born. Our dads were good friends from college and we had to become friends when our dad's were constantly hanging out."

Everyone now understood and gave surprised looks to us.

When I was done eating, I decided it was time for bed. I put my plate in a plastic bin and walked over to the tent, trying to ignore the weird looks Daryl and Merle were giving me.

This day almost a week after the walker infestation was kind of weird. I wasn't given any instructions for chores and ended up wandering around camp aimlessly, bored out of my mind.

"Hey, shrimp," Daryl greeted, walking past me to his truck and ruffling my hair on his way.

"Hey!" I pouted, crossing my arms childishly.

He chuckled at me.

I had nothing else to do, so I followed Daryl over to his truck. He opened the tailgate on the bed of his truck and I hopped up, sitting on it and swinging my short legs in the small open space between the tailgate and the pavement. I hate being so short.

"Need sumthin'?" Daryl asked, not looking up from the black bag he had in his hands.

"I'm so bored!" I groaned.

"Why don't ya go play with yer little buddy, eh?" He smirked.

"I'm 16 not 5," I sulked.

"Debatable," he said, gesturing to my pouty expression.

"Damn you, Daryl Dixon," I muttered, leaning back to lay on the bed of his truck. "So… Whatcha doin'?" I asked, purposefully trying to be annoying. Maybe today would be fun and I could annoy the fuck out of Daryl. That sounded nice.

He sighed and replied in the same tone of voice, "Standing."

I snorted. "I meant with the bag, dumbass."

He chuckled again. "You know, fer a 16 year old, ya sure do gotta potty mouth."

I shrugged. "What are ya gonna do?" I sighed.

It was meant to be a rhetorical question, but apparently Daryl's solution to teenage foul-mouthed-ness was to grab the closest one to him around the ankle and pull her off the bed off his truck and proceed sling her over his shoulder.

"Hey! What are you doing?" I squealed, my torso hanging over the back of Daryl's shoulder. I tried to ignore the fact that his ass was in my face.

He just laughed.

I started beating on his back with my fists, trying not to throw up as I was being held upside down. "Put me down ya big dumb hillbilly!"

Once again, he only laughed.

I noticed a few people watching worriedly, but Merle, Glenn, and Amy watched with amusement. No one stepped forward to stop Daryl from carrying me down to the water. Glenn and Amy followed after us, though, intrigued by Daryl's obvious good mood and my equally obvious lack of up-rightedness.

I couldn't see in front of us, but when I saw the boards of the dock under us disappearing, I started getting a little freaked out. "Daryl? What are you gonna do?"

"Hold yer breath." Then he tossed me into the water.

It was odd flying backwards into the water. I wasn't sure if it was because I was so light or Daryl was so strong or maybe a combination of the two that made me go so far. I screamed the whole way out, but just before I hit the surface of the water, I sucked in a breath of air and held it. Under the water, I could hear Glenn and Amy laughing.

I swam forward, still underwater, till I felt the support poles of the dock, then I resurfaced.

Thankfully Daryl was turned away from the water and he was on the edge of the dock, because otherwise what I did would not have worked at all. I reached up and grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling him down into the water.

"Shit!" he yelled, falling backward into the water in a flurry of flailing arms and sweaty redneck. He hit the water on his back and stayed under for longer than I thought was healthy.

"Daryl?" I asked quietly. I heard Amy and Glenn move forward behind me, trying to get a closer look.

Small bubbles came up from where Daryl had sunk down. Oh God. Did I just drown Daryl Dixon?

I felt hands on my stomach and yelped, kicking out. But I didn't hit anything. Whatever it was that had me was behind me. The hands lifted me, holding me up above the water, my knees still in the water.

I turned my head and looked down to see Daryl holding me above his head. "Yer pretty small, ya know that?"

I kicked him in the shoulder and tried not to pay too much attention to the way his muscles bulged under the effort of holding me up. He let go and I plunged back into the water feet first.

I looked up at Glenn and Amy who were trying to hide their amused grins. I grabbed onto the edge of the dock and struggled to lift myself up. Damn stumpy legs. But Daryl pushed the bottom of my feet, lifting me onto the dock.

"Thanks," I said as he lifted himself up.

Amy and Glenn walked back toward camp, laughing because apparently my facial expressions while flying backwards through the air are hilarious.

I rolled my eyes and leaned back, deciding to let the sun dry me. Daryl did the same beside me.

"So what's with the dog?" Daryl asked after a few minutes of silence.

I watched the clouds as I spoke. "His name is Donkey."

Daryl snorted. "Who in the hell's idea was it to name a dog Donkey?"

I looked over at him, quirking a brow. "Mine."

He laughed, but I didn't mind; I knew it was strange.

"I was only 4, so I decided to name him Donkey because he isn't a Donkey."

Daryl obviously thought this didn't make any sense at all and discussion stopped for a few more minutes. "So ya had that dog since ya was 4? That'd make him, what, 12 human years?"

I nodded, smiling. "Donkey's been with me through just about everything. He sat by my bed the entire time I was sick with the flu when I was 10. He stayed with me all night when I cried when my boyfriend broke up with me. He was even there for me when my grandfather succumbed to cancer a few years ago."

I was shocked at the impromptu life story speech, but it felt almost nice to be telling this to Daryl.

"Sounds like an important dog," he said.

I nodded. "He's the only constant thing in my life anymore besides Glenn, you know? Both have been there for me my whole life and both are still alive and with me now. I think I'm pretty lucky to have that. I'm not sure why I'm opening up to you like this after you just chucked me into the water… crazy bastard..." I smiled over at him.

He grinned and looked over at me. "Yeah, well don't be expectin' no apology or nothin'."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah right. Like I ever thought you of all people would apologize for anything."

He nodded. "Glad we're on the same page."

We laid out on the dock for about an hour letting the sun dry us before we were anything that wasn't sopping wet. I was about ready to pass out, my eyes shut and the sun warm on my skin when Merle's voice interrupted the peaceful air around us.

"Hey, Darlina! Git yer ass up here and quit flirtin' with the rug rat!"

I looked up to see Daryl blushing and scowling at Merle who was standing on the other end of the dock.

"Ya best shut th' hell up!" Daryl growled menacingly. It was strange to say the least. Daryl was so quiet. The only thing that would've even slightly tipped me off to Daryl's temper was the angry glint in his eyes he sometimes got when anyone talked down to him.

Merle mock trembled. "Oh yes ma'am!"

Daryl scrambled up and ran up the dock, chasing after his brother who ran like the wind up and down the shore of the water. It was like Tom and Jerry.

I rolled over onto my belly and watched the two, entertained as hell.

Today really had turned out pretty good, despite my original thoughts about today.

I laughed as I watched Merle stumble and Daryl jump onto his back, weighing him down.

Today was a great day.

* * *

><p><strong>A fun, light-hearted look at the two Dixon brothers toward the end! :) I hope you guys liked it! <strong>


	8. Rhymes With Will Ferrell

KAIYA'S POV:

"You know what I hate?" I asked Amy, sitting across from her at the table inside the RV. I was grateful no one was around; I needed girl time.

"What?" she asked, smiling and looking up from watching the campers out the window.

"Being 16!" I whined, banging my head down onto my folded arms.

She laughed and said, "I'm assuming this has something do to with someone whose name rhymes with Will Ferrell?"

I nodded hesitantly, face still under the cover of my arms.

She giggled.

"He's 28!" I said, my words muffled by the fabric of my black and red hoodie.

Amy snorted. I looked up, shocked to hear such an un-girly-like thing like that come from her. "Welcome to the apocalypse. The same rules don't apply here as in normal society," she said, leaning forward and smiling.

"Ah, but you're forgetting… We live with a cop," I said, pointing out the window to where Shane was standing talking to Carl and Lori. "And besides, its not like he would ever think that way about me or feel that way or anything." And out comes the pessimism!

Amy rolled her eyes, grin still in place. "Whatever you say," she stood and walked out of the RV.

I sat confused for a moment, before getting up and rushing to follow her. "Wait! What does that mean?"

DARYL'S POV:

The brotherly moment between Merle and I down by the docks was a rare occurrence and I hoped Kaiya knew enough not to go running her mouth to all these damn idiots.

She was a nice girl. Cussed like a sailor, but she was a nice girl. I would never tell Merle that, though. He would think I'd gone soft.

I sat on the chair just outside our tent and wiped every bolt I had for my crossbow till it was spotless.

I glanced up and saw Amy and Kaiya standing near her and Glenn's tent, talking animatedly about something or another. Her hair, now dry, was back up in a ponytail and there were small groups of hairs that hung by the side of her face and only reached to just below her chin.

It was starting to get dark. I wandered over to the tree line and started to go in the woods to start watch when I heard a female's voice call my name.

I turned to see Kaiya jogging up to me, Amy grinning at her from her spot by Glenn's tent.

"Yeah?"

She stopped just in front of me. "I wanted to say thank you for today. I don't know why, you didn't do much besides throw me into the water and listen to my canine confessions, but…" she smiled. "It was fun. You saved me from dying of boredom. And about you and Merle," she lowered her voice. "I'm not gonna tell anyone if you don't want me to."

I nodded once. "Good. 'Cause if ya do, I'll feed ya to a walker."

She nodded, knowing I was joking despite the straight face.

I turned back around and started to search the perimeter.

AMY'S POV:

I watched Kaiya talking to Daryl and couldn't help but smile.

She seemed to be the only one who could actually talk to him; no one else had tried for fear that he had the same temper as Merle. Everyone thought he was just as bad as his brother, but Kaiya talked to both of them.

I had seen her chatting with Merle on occasion, but only for a few short minutes. When she was with Daryl, it was more than just a few minutes. Like today at the dock.

That might have been the first time I had seen him smile. Not just a smirk or a tiny little grin. He had actually smiled. It seemed out of place on his face, but in a good way.

So Kaiya was not only the only person that could talk to him or his brother, she was also the only one that could make him smile so far.

It made me a little sad to think that they would never be a couple. Because, although I knew Kaiya liked him, I knew he probably didn't think that way about someone 12 years younger than him. And Kaiya was right, we lived with a cop who would never let that happen.

I looked over at Shane who was watching the two converse and frowned.

I never thought I'd say this, but Merle is right: Damn pigs.

* * *

><p><strong>Once again, hope you enjoyed it! :) Merry almost Christmas! <strong>


	9. Squirrel Skinning

KAIYA'S POV:

It was hard to tell how long we had been living out here; I had lost count of the days, though I figured it was somewhere near the 2 week mark.

And still no walkers. I wasn't stupid enough to think that meant they would never find their way out here, because, inevitably, someday it would be necessary for us to move on due to those rotting bastards.

I still hadn't had the need to use either of my guns, which I was thankful for. Its not that I don't like shooting or that I couldn't stand the thought of killing something that was once human, its just that it meant there hadn't been any real reason to use it.

I sat at the table outside the Dixon brothers' tent, unsure how I got tricked into this. Damn Merle. He sat on the other side of the table, grinning at me smugly. Daryl was on my right, also skinning squirrels.

I hate skinning squirrels. It is officially my least favorite chore around camp. Though I had to say I rather liked the company.

Glenn didn't like that I was hanging out with them so much, but he didn't say it aloud. I could see it in his eyes whenever I was with them. I understood that. Merle was about as racist as a 1940's newspaper.

I ignored the worried looks Glenn was giving me across camp at our tent and continued with skinning.

Ugh… I felt bad for this squirrel. He had been killed by the Dixons and now he was being skinned by me, The Worst Skinner in the World. I was completely butchering it, which Merle and Daryl found hilarious.

"Yer doin' it all wrong, baby doll," Merle drawled, leaning back in his seat.

"Shut up…" I muttered, looking sadly at the pile of ripped up skins I had acquired. Then I looked at Daryl and Merle's. They were cut smooth and not messed up in the slightest. Mine were stupid looking and theirs were genius.

I frowned. Damn Dixons.

"Here," Daryl said, grabbing the bloody squirrel from my hand. "Take th' knife like this," he demonstrated how to hold it. "And cut up like 'at," he pulled the knife up the length of the body, leaving a perfectly straight cut. "Now you try," he set the squirrel back in front of me and flipped it over to the side that still had fur.

I stared at the knife in my hand (one of the ones Glenn and I had picked up from the weapon store in Atlanta), unsure that I could do that and a little scared of embarrassing myself further with my lack of squirrel-skinning-skill.

Daryl stood from his seat, sensing my hesitation and moved to stand behind where I was sitting. He reached around me, his arms on either side of me. "Here," he said, grabbing my hand around the knife in his. His hand was warm and a little rough. He placed his other hand over my hand that was holding the head of the squirrel. "Hold it there," he moved my hand down to about the chest. Then he started cutting, moving my hand and the knife skillfully in his own.

I tried to ignore Merle watching us and focus on the squirrel in front of me… but Daryl was so close it kinda muddled my mind. More than once I found my focus moving from skinning this squirrel to how warm his chest was against my back, or how close his breath was to my ear, or how big the muscles on either side of-

Okay, concentrate, Kaiya. Concentrate. You can do that. Just concentrate.

"And there," he announced, letting go of my hands and moving away, his warmth gone just as quickly as it had come.

"Yeah, I'm still completely clueless," I admitted.

Merle and Daryl chuckled and made fun of me, mimicking my jerky movements and uncertain hold on the knife.

"Damn you Dixons," I muttered, standing from the table. I slapped Daryl in the back of the head (not too hard) as I walked past which caused Merle to laugh louder. But as I passed him, I did the same.

They both chuckled and shook their heads.

It seemed like I was the only one who could joke around with them like that. If anybody else tried it, they would probably get socked.

But I was the only one that bothered to talk to them. I was the only one that was even sort of nice to them.

They were okay people, just Merle's habits, racism, and shitty attitude towards others made it hard for people to want to hang out with them. Daryl had exploded at a few people in the two weeks we had been here, so I guessed his temper hindered their desire to talk to him.

I hoped that didn't come back to bite them in the ass later. I had grown rather close to the two Dixons and I would honestly hate to see anything happen to one of them.

* * *

><p><strong>A few more fluffy-type chapters before we get into the storyline of the show! Hope you liked it! :) <strong>


	10. Donkey's Last Day

KAIYA'S POV:

I woke to the sound of barking in the middle of the night. Donkey.

I shot straight up and ran outside, dropping to my knees in front of the dog. I tried to calm him down, knowing that if he didn't, there would be walkers raining down on us.

"What the hell is that?" someone behind us boomed.

"Donkey, shut up, you stupid mutt!" I whispered frantically to him.

Glenn came up behind me and tried helping me with coaxing the dog into silence.

Shane ran up, Dixons flanking him, which was an odd sight; they hated each other. T-dog crept out of his tent, as did most of the other campers.

"Shut that damn thing up!" Shane yelled.

"I cant!" I yelled back. "Something's wrong, he doesn't usually do this!"

Daryl had his crossbow in his hand and Merle had a shotgun. What, did they think walkers started barking?

"Donkey shut up!" I yelled.

"We're gonna have to put him down!" Shane yelled over Donkey's barking.

I stood. "What?"

All three men held their weapons up and leveled them at Donkey, who was still barking like crazy. Shane heard Carl crying over by Lori and rushed over to him. Daryl and Merle stepped up.

"C'mon, Daryl! Shoot that mutt!" Merle had dropped his weapon and was relying on Daryl to carry out the deed.

I ran up to Daryl and grabbed his arm, hoping to persuade him not to.

He kept his face pointed toward the dog, but his eyes flicked down to me. He looked kind of nervous, as though he didn't know what to do, whose side to take.

"Shoot boy!" Merle shouted, cackling evilly.

"Daryl-"

Before I could get my plea out, his finger had jerked the trigger back and a bolt was sent through Donkey's head.

"No," I mumbled, shaking my head and trying to force the tears down. Unfortunately it didn't work. "Donkey! No!" I started to run to my dead dog, but Glenn wrapped his arms around my midsection and tried to pull me back.

Merle was still howling and Daryl was just standing, crossbow in hand, eyes averted guiltily.

"Hoowee!" Merle yelled. He was making more noise than the dog, why not shoot him? "There ya go, short round, dinner is served!" He gestured to the dog.

I growled and struggled against Glenn's grasp, finally slipping through. I rushed up to Merle and before he knew what was happening, my fist was flying through the air and into his face with as much strength as I could muster.

He gave an "oomph" sound and clutched at his face.

"Shut the fuck up, Merle," I snarled. I wiped my face with the back of my hand and stormed off to the tent, glaring at Daryl on the way. I flung myself down onto my pillow and sobbed, grieving for the loss of one of my constants.

Donkey was gone. Donkey who had woken me up every morning for school with a loud bark. Donkey who had snuck cupcakes out of the kitchen with me when I was 8. Donkey who had let me ride on his back when I was small enough for him to carry.

"Kaiya? You alright?" Glenn asked, standing near me.

I knew he was sad, too; that dog had been part of his past, too, with as much as we hung out when we were littler. Me, Glenn, and Donkey had been like the 3 Musketeers.

I sniffed and wiped my eyes, "Yeah, I'm fine."

Glenn leaned down and rubbed my back, soothing me and making my sobs subside slightly. Glenn hugged me and moved the hair back from my face, holding me as I cried. Glenn might have been a guy and older than me, but I knew he let a few tears slide, too.

* * *

><p><strong>This is another really short chapter, so I'm going to put up another chapter right now for you :)<strong>


	11. Guilt

DARYL'S POV:

I was having a fairly pleasant dream about downing a pitcher of beer when I was woken by the sound of barking. It was Kaiya's dog. Donkey.

I groaned and grabbed my crossbow, bolting out of the tent with Merle and his shotgun right behind me. If that dog was barking, there might be walkers around. Shane ran out in front of us, pistol in hand.

We came to the tree the dog was tied up at, but Kaiya was already there, kneeling down with Glenn trying to calm the frantic dog. He didn't seem to be barking at anything. It was like he was just barking to be barking.

"We're gonna have to put him down!" Shane yelled.

Oh damn. This was her… what had she called it? Her constant. Glenn and that dog was all she had left. We couldn't put it down. It was part of her, it would tear her apart.

She stood up, spinning around with a surprised and devastated look deep in her eyes. "What?"

We all had our weapons pointed straight at the dog.

Shane spun around and ran to Lori's kid, Carl, who was crying.

"C'mon, Daryl!" Merle hollered, lowering his weapon. "Shoot that mutt!"

I kept my crossbow up, unsure of what I should do. Listen to my brother, or listen to Kaiya.

I felt hands on my arm. I looked down out of the corner of my eye and saw Kaiya, looking up at me, the devastation replaced by pleading.

"Shoot, boy!" Merle yelled, laughing.

"Daryl-" she started.

But under the pressure, my finger had found itself pulling back and sending an arrow flying through the skull of the dog.

She shook her head as I slowly lowered my weapon. "No," she whispered. "Donkey! No!" She started to move forward, but Glenn grabbed her around her stomach and holding her to him.

I looked down, shamed, guilty, and unable to look straight at her.

"There ya go, short round, dinner is served!" Merle yelled, pointed at the dog.

Even I had to admit that was pretty low.

Kaiya made an angered noise deep in her throat and wriggled her way out of the circle of Glenn's arms. She ran up to Merle and punched him in the face. That was something he obviously hadn't been expecting. It wasn't anything any of us had expected; she hadn't ever really seemed like a violent person. She seemed to have a pretty good right hook, though.

Merle was bent over, grabbing at his face.

"Shut the fuck up, Merle."

She was a strange 16 year old. I had seen grown men unable to get at Merle like that. But a 16 year old girl had his lip bleeding in 2 seconds. It had been a rather unannounced strike, though.

She stormed off past me to her tent. I kept my eyes on the ground, but I could feel her glaring at me all the way to her tent. Glenn followed after her.

"Lil' bitch… Lucky I don't hit girls," Merle mumbled, spitting the blood from his busted lip out on the ground.

Everyone was standing around, watching the scene.

I grabbed Merle by the elbow and dragged him back to the tent. "What the hell was 'at?" I asked, laying back down on my sleeping bag.

"Shut th' hell up and go to sleep," Merle hissed, poking at his swollen lip.

"Asshole," I muttered, hoping he heard me.

He chuckled so I assumed he must've.

I closed my eyes and tried to sleep, but behind my eye lids, I remembered clearly the conversation I had with Kaiya on the dock almost a week ago.

_The sun settled on her tan skin in a warm glow. Her eyes were closed, but I knew she wasn't asleep. "Donkey's been with me through everything." She smiled. _

I opened my eyes, hoping to banish the image. But when I closed my eyes again, she was smiling over at me.

"_He's the only constant thing in my life besides Glenn, you know?" I wouldn't say it, but I did know. Merle was like my constant. He had been there my whole life. He was never a very good big brother, but he was blood. And he was all I had left, whether I liked it or not. _

When I opened my eyes again, light was shining through the fabric of the tent. Damn I hate mornings.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope ya'll liked it! :)<strong>


	12. Still a Jackass

KAIYA'S POV:

I woke up alone again. Why did no one feel the need to wake me up?

I was in a pretty good mood until I remembered what happened last night.

I started getting dressed. Once again, I had my shirt off when Daryl decided to drop by. "Kaiya? I- Oh fuck. Again?"

I looked over and saw him standing in the tent with his hand covering his eyes. Even though I was terribly angry with him, I couldn't help saying, "I'm not _that_ bad am I?"

He looked up, this time I had a shirt on. He looked kind of relieved when he realized I was being civil… for the moment.

"What do you want?" I asked, suddenly icy.

He looked like he had been expecting this. "They sent me to get ya."

"Why you?" I asked, crossing my arms.

He shrugged, choosing not to say anything else, though he looked like he was getting angry.

I turned, pulling on some shoes. As he was walking out, I whispered, "Jackass." I think he heard, too, because his footsteps faltered and paused for a moment before he continued on. Good.

I walked out of the tent, going to the circle of campers by the RV.

Shane began giving us instructions. "We're going to need to assemble a team of people to go into Atlanta with Glenn for supplies."

Beside me, I heard Glenn groan. I knew he thought it would be dangerous; he had told me before that he was glad it was just him going into Atlanta because it was quicker and he didn't have anyone dragging him down.

"Any volunteers?"

Andrea stepped forward. Amy pouted, but kept quiet. She was probably waiting till later to berate her sister's decision. T-dog, Jacqui, and Merle also stepped forward.

Merle came as a surprise to everyone. What we he want to go to Atlanta for? Certainly not the good of the group. His choice had everyone a little nervous; no one knew what he was gonna try to pull when they were in there.

"You all leave tomorrow morning," Shane announced, nodding at Glenn.

The people closest to those going tried to talk them out of it. Jacqui and T-dog were the closest to each other, so they didn't do anything. But Amy drilled Andrea, Morales's wife begged him not to go, and, though I knew it was useless, I tried to tell Glenn not to go.

"They need someone to show them the way into the city," Glenn reasoned.

I knew he was right, but I didn't like it. I had a terrible feeling about their trip. After I nodded, Glenn walked off, going to help T-dog with chopping wood.

I noticed Daryl talking calmly to Merle. It seemed like he was questioning his reasons, too. But Merle didn't respond. He just walked away, leaving Daryl frowning.

He looked up and noticed me watching him.

I sighed and shook my head, walking down to the water. I took my shoes off by the shore and walked out across the wooden dock. I sat on the edge and swung my legs back and forth, my toes grazing the water's edge. I leaned back, my feet still hanging, until my back hit the dock.

I closed my eyes and tried not to think. About Donkey. About Daryl. About Glenn going into Atlanta. About walkers. About anything.

I just sat and listened to the sound of the water and the campers far up at the camp. I was so lost in non-thought that I almost didn't hear a pair of unsure footsteps approaching me.

"If you've come to apologize, don't bother," I said, keeping my eyes closed.

The footsteps got closer.

I frowned, sitting up and turning around. "Look, Dar-"

It wasn't Daryl. It was a walker. And it was standing between me and the camp, blocking my path off the dock. It moaned and made some gurgly snarling noises and continued limping toward me.

I scrambled to stand up and even then, I had nowhere to go. I was on the very edge of the dock as it was. If that walker took just one step forward, I would be within its reach. I couldn't jump into the water because it would come after me and that could contaminate the others' water supply. Then they would all be dead.

It took a step forward, arms swinging out. It grabbed hold of my wrist and started pulling me. I kicked out at it, only enraging it further. It opened its mouth, trying to get its mouth around my hand. I kicked harder, but my hand was in its mouth now. I was done. Game over.

But, just before it bit down, an arrow protruded from its forehead. It fell limply backwards.

I dropped down to my knees, tears falling down my face.

I saw Daryl running down the length of the dock up to me. He yanked the arrow out of the walker's head, and then caught sight of me, crying, fearful, shaken. He frowned and slung his crossbow around so it was hanging over his back. He crouched down and looked me in the eye. Then he started inspecting my hand to make sure I hadn't been bitten. When he was done, he looked back into my horrified eyes. "Ya alright?" he asked, putting a hand on my arm.

I nodded, expression the same.

"Don't tell the others 'bout this alright?" Daryl asked, pointing to the re-dead walker.

No problem there. I nodded.

"C'mon, grab a foot."

I stood, still shaky and helped Daryl drag it down the dock and out into the woods. We carried it a pretty far way, out past the line of tin cans we had set up as a security system. We didn't say a single thing all the way out there.

Then Daryl stopped. "This is good."

I nodded, face devoid of emotion.

"Ya sure yer alright?" Daryl asked, disbelievingly.

"My hand was _in its mouth_," I whispered.

Daryl frowned and looked at the ground, seeming like he didn't know what to do. Or knew what to do but wasn't sure he wanted to. Then, before I knew what was happening, he was right in front of me, only a few inches away. His bright blue eyes staring into mine as if gauging my reaction. I gazed back steadily.

He reached up and did something I never thought Daryl Dixon would do in all his life. He hugged me.

It took a second for the shock to get through and I lifted my arms and put them on his back. The hug was over way too fast.

"Don't tell anyone," he said, walking away.

I rushed to catch up with him; I really didn't wanna get left alone in the woods right now.

"Hey Daryl," I called.

He turned around, but I kept walking.

"You're still a jackass."

He smirked at me as I walked past him and we made our way back to camp.

* * *

><p><strong>A little sympathetic tenderness from our favorite zombie hunter :) Hope you liked it! <strong>


	13. Rainy Day

KAIYA'S POV:

When Daryl and I got back up to the camp, nobody had really noticed we were gone besides Amy and Merle. Merle gave him an almost disapproving look but at the same time he seemed proud. Amy gave us a funny look but otherwise said nothing. Daryl walked off to Merle without sparing me a second glance.

I gestured for Amy to follow me inside the RV. I know Daryl told me not to tell anybody, but I had to tell Amy. I wouldn't tell her about the walker, but I would tell her about Daryl's unexpected tenderness.

She sat at the table opposite me and gave me a questioning look.

"I went down to the dock because I wanted to get away and stop thinking for a little while, and then Daryl came out there and I was sad and scared. And guess what he did."

Amy shrugged, still confused.

"He hugged me."

Amy's face turned to one of pure disbelief. "No way! He's Daryl Dixon! He doesn't _hug_ people!"

I nodded. "That's what I thought." I looked out the window where I could see Daryl and Merle talking, only now it looked like he was kind of angry at Merle who was laughing. I looked back to Amy. "Don't tell anyone, though. I wasn't even supposed to say anything."

She nodded and pantomimed zipping her lips. After a few minutes of silence, Amy said, "So how was it?"

I laughed at her and made a face. "Its not like we had sex, Amy."

She nodded. "Yeah, but still. How was it?"

I took a moment to think about it. "It was…. Nice. He's really warm, you know?" I smiled at the table under my elbow as I spoke.

"I knew it!" Amy exclaimed.

I was startled. "What?"

She gave me a smug look. "You are totally crushing all over Daryl Dixon."

I shook my head. I don't crush on boys. I let the other girls, the girly ones, do that. I mean sure I really did like him. He was pretty gorgeous and he had a lot of good qualities… But did I really have a _crush_ on him? I thought about it… The way my face heated up when he hugged me. The way all of my thoughts somehow ended up back with him. The way I felt the need to smile at the way the corner of his baby blue eyes crinkled when he smirked… Oh God. I had a crush on Daryl Dixon.

I groaned and banged my head on the table.

"Is that like a habit of yours or something?" Amy laughed.

I looked up. "Huh?"

"Hitting your head on stuff. You seem to do that a lot."

I shrugged. "I've been doing it more often since the world went to hell."

She nodded, suddenly not as amused as before by my odd behavioral pattern.

We turned to look out of the window at the same time. It was still morning, but the sky was a cloudy grey color.

I frowned. "I hope it doesn't rain."

Of course small raindrops would start pelting the window of the RV as soon as I said that. I groaned and hit my head on the table again.

Amy giggled at me.

"I'm gonna go to my tent. Maybe with the rain I can get some sleep."

She nodded and waved as I jumped out of the RV.

I was half glad and half mad that I was wearing short jean shorts. I was glad because it was extremely uncomfortable wearing wet jeans. I was mad because the rain was freezing cold on my exposed legs.

"Dammit!" I growled to myself and started to run over to mine and Glenn's tent.

But I ran straight into someone. Daryl had been running over to his and Merle's tent and we collided as our paths crossed. I fell to the ground, grumbling about voting for stop lights for the campsite. Daryl offered me his hand and pulled me back up to my feet. I nodded awkwardly to him, trying to dust the dirt now turning mud off of my rear end. He nodded back and then continued on to his tent.

I shook my head and walked over to the tent, taking off my shoes before stepping inside.

Glenn was seated on his sleeping bag shuffling a deck of cards. He smiled up at me, nonverbally issuing a challenge.

"You're on," I said, sitting down on my blanket.


	14. Mud

KAIYA'S POV:

It rained for most of the day, but stopped around sunset. We all ventured cautiously out of our tents, peeking around. The ground was muddy and it was humid, but other than that, everything seemed clear. We came out of the tents and walked about as if nothing had happened. The mud squished under our shoes and came up around the soles.

Many people didn't mind, but these shoes had cost me $120 of my own money. All those hours of babysitting to buy these shoes just so they could get muddy after a few months. That just figured… Survive the apocalypse, but my shoes get messed up by mud. Not something like blood and guts… mud.

"Ugh! Glenn!" I groaned, looking down at my shoes.

"Just wash them out!" he laughed.

I glared at him. "They are suede shoes, Glenn. You don't just _'wash them'_! I need suede cleaner."

Glenn laughed at me, but I was too focused on my poor shoes. We walked across the muddy terrain over to the RV. The black suede of my shoes was coated in a thick brown goop.

We walked over to Amy who was standing under the cloth awning over the side of the RV. That little jerk was just standing there, laughing as everyone else had a slip 'n' slide party in the mud. Glenn and I finally reached her, leaning on each other for support.

"Amy, you wouldn't happen to have any suede cleaner, would you?" I asked, without any actual hope that she did.

She gave me an apologetic look and shook her head no.

I sighed and looked down at my muddy shoes.

Someone whistled and Glenn, Amy and I looked up. No one else did because they were too preoccupied with not falling into the treacherous goop beneath their feet.

Daryl was standing by his truck, fingers in his mouth like he had been whistling. He gestured me over.

I grimaced, eyeing the ground between us.

Daryl gave me a look that said, "Seriously? You're that much of a baby?" but he sighed and came over to us, no stutter in his steps.

"How come you don't slide like the rest of us?" I asked, indignant.

He grinned. "'m used to it." He turned around so his back was facing me and sighed. "Hop on."

I could hardly believe my senses. I looked over at Amy and Glenn and noticed they too were completely flabbergasted. Maybe I wasn't imagining random hillbillies offering me piggyback rides.

"Ya wanna get yer shoes cleaned up, er what?"

That snapped me out of it. I put each hand on either of his shoulders and used that to jump and pull myself up. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he grabbed onto the underside of my legs. My heart jumped into my throat at the contact. Damn short jean shorts.

Everyone seemed to notice something odd about the picture. Daryl carrying a 16 year old girl on his back. Daryl carrying ANY girl on his back. Daryl just wasn't the piggyback type.

He walked across what originally seemed like a very long trek, but was actually probably no more than 6 or 7 feet. When we got to his truck, he let go of my legs and I dropped from his back.

"Ya need to get some meat on yer bones, yer awfully small," he muttered, looking through a cardboard box that was in the back of his truck bed.

"It comes with the height. Wouldn't look very good if I was this tall and fat, now would I?" I countered, lifting myself onto the tailgate.

He chuckled and said, "Guess not."

Was he admitting I looked good? Or was I just being an infatuated teenage girl and making something out of nothing? Oh God, I'm turning prep!

I leaned back on the bed of the truck, not caring that my hoodie got wet as I did so, and rubbed my eyes with the heel of my hands. "So, how're we gonna clean my shoes?" I asked, not looking up from the sky above me. It was now a clear blue. Goddamn Georgian bipolarness.

He tapped me on the stomach and I propped myself up on my elbows to look at him. He was holding a suede cleaning kit up with a finger from each hand so that it covered the lower half of his face. He looked so cute and little boy-like that I almost wanted to laugh. But it was so completely adorable that I stopped myself.

"You gonna help me?" I asked, laughing. There was no way I would ever be able to do that on my own.

"Oh, don't worry, I don't trust ya 'nough tuh leave ya tuh yer own devices that long with cleanin' products," he chuckled.

I glared playfully at him and hopped down from the truck bed.

"And 'sides, I gotta clean mine, too."

I looked down at his suede work boots, now completely caked with mud. "You gonna piggyback me down to the water?" I asked, looking up at him.

He sighed and handed me the cleaning kit so he would have at least one free hand to hold me up (he was bringing his crossbow so we didn't have a repeat of last time).

I jumped back up and he used one hand to hold my left leg up. The other leg I just wrapped around him more tightly than normal so I didn't fall off.

He walked down to the water, the campers' eyes following him weirdly. Once again because I was on his back. As if it didn't look weird already, Daryl carrying a girl on his back, the size difference between us was almost comical. It was like a rabbit riding on a horses back. Which only made me feel even more small. Stupid analogies.

We got to the edge of the dock and he set me down and took the suede cleaner back. We walked the rest of the way down to the end of the dock. We sat down and he put his crossbow behind him. Then we took our shoes off.

"So," I started, feeling awkward that there wasn't much talking going on.

He looked up from scrubbing his shoe briefly and then back down. "So?" he asked.

I sighed and laid back on my elbows, letting my legs hang over the edge of the dock. I crossed my ankles and leaned my head back, letting my hair fall backward.

This time, the silence wasn't awkward. It was nice. Peaceful even. There were no sounds other than Daryl scrubbing his shoes.

"Yer hairs a mess," he muttered.

I blushed. "I know. It's the humidity. It gets frizzy like that." I wanted to be mad at him for pointing it out and making me feel self-conscious, but at least now there was conversation.

"I dunno how ya can stand it. Long hair. I hate it if mine even barely reaches the back o' my neck." I peeked an eye open and saw him stop scrubbing long enough to grab a piece of his hair and look at it contemptuously. "Gonna need to cut it soon," he muttered quietly.

I got an idea. "I'll make you a deal," I said, gaining his attention. I lifted my head and looked straight at him. "You clean my shoes, since I have no idea what I'm doing, and I'll cut your hair for you."

He seemed to think about it for a minute before saying it, but eventually he asked, "Ya know how tuh cut hair?"

I nodded. "I used to cut my mom's all the time."

I smiled and looked at the water, remembering the last time I cut it. She went crazy because she didn't trust me with scissors, but she ended up loving the haircut. I frowned at the memory of her in our kitchen just before Glenn-

"She turned?" Daryl asked, keeping his gaze down on his shoe. His tone wasn't the normal hard one I was used to. It was actually soft. I never thought I'd use that word to describe Daryl Dixon, but he's been surprising me lately.

"Yeah," I muttered softly.

He frowned and set his shoes to the side. "Shoe," he said, holding his hand out.

I grabbed my shoes by the little loop on the back and handed them to him. He went to work again.

"Thank you," I said, closing my eyes again.

"S'not a problem. Had to clean mine anyway."

I smiled. "I meant for listening."

He stopped scrubbing and I could feel his eyes on me. "What do ya mean?"

I tilted my head back a little. "I could talk to Glenn, but he's known my parents for longer than I have and he's probably feeling the same way. It'd be like repeating his own feelings back to him. I cant really talk to Amy about it because she only really ever wants to talk about boys. But with you its different, you know? I can really talk to you. About stuff that matters. So thank you."

He took a minute before replying, "Yer the only one who listens to me er Merle. Think of it as payback."

I smiled at thought. Then I opened my eyes and sat up, looking behind us up at camp. "Speaking of, where is that old bastard?"

Daryl chuckled. "Went to sleep when it started rainin' still hasn't woken up."

"Wow," I laughed.

He nodded.

I took the time, while he was distracted with cleaning my shoe, to look at him. I mean, really look at him. His blue eyes were tilted down, focused on my shoe, but I could still see that they were deep in thought. His brows were furrowed over in concentration. He chewed on his lip as he worked and the front of his hair was long enough to fall forward slightly. His muscles worked over the mud on my shoes and showed fully since the sleeves of his shirt were ripped off (as per usual for Daryl).

He tilted his head to the side a bit and I noticed his eyes flick up to where I was and then back down to the shoe again in one swift movement. "What'cha lookin' at?"

"I don't know, I'm still trying to figure that out," I joked, smiling at him.

He frowned and looked at me weirdly.

"I was just kidding!" I said, noticing his thoughtful glances from me and out to the water.

He shrugged and went back to the shoes.

The sun was just sinking below the horizon, the air getting cold. I shivered a little and he asked, "Cold?" I nodded and looked back over at him.

He was inspecting my legs. I blushed a little and realized that was probably how he could tell I was cold: goosebumps.

He scrubbed my last shoe a few more times and then handed them back to me. He stood and offered me his hand.

I pulled on my shoes and grabbed his hand, trying to ignore how warm it was.

He pulled and I lifted myself, but I guess he was thinking that I was heavier than I actually was, because he pulled a little hard and I fell against his chest. I put my hands up, fearing I would fall over onto the dock, but he was there instead, so my hands rested against his chest. His arms went around my shoulders to ensure that I wouldn't fall over.

I was caught there for a moment, my body pressed to his and his arms halfway around me.

I looked up then. His blue eyes were darkened by thought, staring straight at me. He looked vulnerable. It was strange to see him like this. He was a strong, independent hunter. But I could see clearly the pain, indecision, and fear in his eyes in that small moment of complete openness. He looked like he wanted to say something, but it never came out, he just released me and I took a step back.

"Sorry," he mumbled, avoiding my eyes and starting to walk back up to the camp.

"Its all good," I replied. In fact, it wasn't. My heart was going crazy and my face was on fire.

I followed him up to the camp, happy to find that the mud had mostly dried.

We parted ways when we got there. He went to sit in his tent and I went to sit by the fire and eat with everyone else.

Once again, they were all telling stories of a past life. T-dog had an exceptionally funny story about a girl who looked just like me and had to ask him how to use a pay phone.

When we were done eating that night, I tried again to persuade Glenn not to go to Atlanta or at least to refuse to take that many people. But he wouldn't hear any of it.

I frowned, but nodded. "If you die, I'll kill you," I said.

It used to just be a funny thing I would say because it was technically impossible. But due to recent events, it was more possible than I was comfortable with. The thought made my frown deepen.

Glenn put his hand on my shoulder and I looked up. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. Promise." He gave me a smile and I felt a terrible wave of homesickness. That smile had been there for me all my life. I remembered him smiling the exact same way when he was 8, 12, and 17. But now, one large factor had changed. No one from our last life was there.

I felt tears threatening. I cried myself to sleep that night, because I could lose Glenn tomorrow, because I had lost everything else, and because I was so confused about Daryl. Whatever my reasons, Glenn held me and rocked me to sleep as I wept.


	15. We Won't Know If We Dont Try

KAIYA'S POV:

I woke up early that morning, which was a rare thing for me. Glenn was still asleep and I didn't want to wake him; he would be needing all that rest for his trip to Atlanta.

I smiled at his face. His eyes shut, face smooth and relaxed. His mouth was open, soft snores drifting out from the back of his throat.

I could almost pretend that this was just like when we would have sleepovers when we were little and we would camp out in the backyard with flashlights and tell horror stories as Donkey kept watch for monsters for us. But this wasn't like that. Our parents were dead and so was Donkey.

At least we still had each other. I don't know what I would've done if Glenn had been turned into one of those things. He had been a major emotional support beam in the structure of my life. He was, in all the most important ways, like my brother.

I tried to get up, but when I did that, Glenn's arms tightened around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him. As he did so, he made a soft whimpering sound. Like the kind he had made when we were kids. I never really had nightmares, but Glenn used to have them so bad it was almost clinical. I remembered sitting up with him at night when we were little and talking to him about it. I would grab his hand in mine and tell him whenever he needed to tell someone about his nightmares, I would always be there. He had made me pinkie promise.

I smiled at the memory and felt a little bit better. I had kept my promise. I was still here from him. No matter how much I felt like giving up, I had to keep going for Glenn. It seemed like everyone had some form of family out here and I was Glenn's.

I sighed and figured I wouldn't be getting out of bed till Glenn woke up. So I settled back and took a short nap before Glenn shook me awake.

"Psst. Kaiya," Glenn whispered.

"I don't wanna take another Spanish test!" I yelled, sitting straight up.

Glenn laughed at me, so I glared at him. "We're leaving soon."

I frowned and nodded. I was still in my clothes from last night, but I didn't care. I walked outside with Glenn and his packed backpack. Everyone was standing around, saying their goodbyes.

We got to the edge of the group and I spun around and assaulted Glenn with a hug around his shoulders. He chuckled and wrapped his arms around my waist. I felt a tear or two slide down my cheek.

"You'd better come back," I whispered.

"Hey," he said, pushing me back. He held his pinkie up and gave me an expectant grin.

I couldn't help but laugh. I wrapped my pinkie around his and used my other hand to grab the back of his head and lean his forehead down so it was rested against mine. Our pinkies were still wrapped around each other as I said, "I love you, Glenn."

I hoped he knew I meant that as a sister to her brother. I guess he did because he said, "I love you too Kaiya."

I hugged him one more time before he left, then watched as the Atlanta-bound group disappeared into small black dots on the horizon.

DARYL'S POV:

Merle and I merely nodded to each other as a form of a goodbye.

I watched on jealously as Kaiya and Glenn shared their goodbyes.

She was walking with him toward the group of people headed into Atlanta when she suddenly spun around and nearly tackled Glenn in a hug. I almost laughed at how funny it looked. She was so short and he was so thin, they probably weighed about the same.

But then I noticed the tears rolling down her face. I sat in a chair outside my tent and watched as everyone said goodbye.

"You'd better come back," Kaiya said, tears still streaming.

I looked up and saw him push her back slightly and hold his pinkie up, grinning.

She laughed and wrapped her pinkie around his. Then she grabbed the back of his head and pulled his head down. For an angry second, I thought she was going to kiss him. It was irrational and I don't know why I was angry, but I was. Then I realized she was just leaning his forehead on hers.

"I love you, Glenn," she said, eyes locked on his. I could see in her eyes that she meant this in as brotherly a way as possible.

"I love you too, Kaiya," Glenn said, pulling her back into a hug.

I was jealous.

Most people would say, "Oh, you've got a crush on that underage girl over there, and you're jealous because she was hugging Glenn." I would like to punch you in the face, because that is incorrect.

I was jealous because in a way I wished Merle and I had that kind of easy sibling relationship. Hell, I wasn't asking for him to go around camp holding my hand and sharing his feelings and shit like that, I just wanted some assurance that Merle cared for me, his little brother. I wanted to be sure that if I was going into Atlanta and got eaten, he would be even a little upset. I could honestly say I would be sad if my older brother was bitten or eaten in the city. But how was I to know those feelings of brotherly concern were reciprocated?

I stayed in my chair as the group left.

Kaiya stayed by the road, watching until they were gone from sight. When she turned around, there were tear stains on her cheek. I chewed on my lower lip and watched her start to walk back to her tent. But then she looked up and saw me watching her. I didn't lower my eyes as she walked over.

She crossed her arms, eyes betraying her concern for Glenn. "Can we talk?"

I watched her for a few seconds and then nodded, standing from my seat.

She started walking down to the dock again. It seemed like this had become our unofficial meeting place. Before she reached the wooden dock, she bent down and picked up a handful of stones from the sand and gravel mixture on the shore of the water. Then she continued on to the end of the dock.

I stayed a few paces behind her.

When we reached the end, she started skipping the rocks she had picked up from before. I stared out at the water, observing her sloppy throws.

"You think they'll make it back?" she asked.

I peeked at her from the side of my vision. "Yeah, why wouldn't they?"

She shrugged and threw another rock. "I just don't know what I'd do if I lost Glenn. You know? That's my brother going out there. You know what that's like, right?" She looked up at me.

I looked down with a frown. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I did. But she had been completely honest with me, telling me just about everything. I had told her basically nothing. I just nodded, one short nod.

She skipped another rock, failing horribly once more.

"Geez, ya cant do anything can ya?" I asked, laughing at her pathetic attempts at rock skipping.

She frowned at me. "What do you mean?"

I plucked a rock from her hand and threw it, letting it skim across the surface and bounce 4 times before sinking. "Ya cant walk through mud without slippin', ya cant clean suede, and ya cant skip rocks. What girl from Georgia cant skip rocks?"

She held up both of her thumbs and used them to point at herself.

I chuckled.

"And besides, that's not true! I can do…" she stopped and seemed to think for a minute. Then she clapped once and held up a finger, her face brightened as if she had thought of something. "This!"

She started dancing. It was a weird dance. Lots of movement. But she was good. She reached her arms out, popping her body once quickly and then kicked a foot out, spinning around and landing in a pose.

I rose my eyebrows and smiled, surprised. I clapped a few times and she bowed. "So yer a dancer?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest.

She nodded, smiling. "In 8th grade, I was in a dance competition. Me and my group made 3rd in state."

I nodded.

"So what are you planning on doing today?" she asked, trying to skip another rock the way she had seen me do it. It half worked that time.

"I'm goin' huntin' at 'round noon." I pretended not to see her frown. "What about you?"

She shrugged. "Probably just gonna help with laundry, or the kids, or maybe I'll just sit in my tent and worry myself to death." She laughed. Even though she meant it as a joke, I knew she was probably considering it now.

I turned and grabbed her shoulders, making her face me. I looked into her eyes. "They're gonna be fine, alright? Don't worry about them. They'll all be alright."

She nodded, her eyes seeming to dart between my eyes and my mouth a couple times. That was when I noticed how close our faces were to each other. But for some reason, I didn't pull away like I thought I would. I stayed there, oddly comfortable with the proximity.

We stayed like that for a few minutes before she whispered, "Are you gonna kiss me?"

I could feel her breath over my face. I took a few breath's worth of a pause before whispering back, "Do ya want me to kiss you?"

She seemed to think about it. "I don't know. I think I do."

I looked from her eyes to her mouth and then back up to her eyes. "Are ya sure this is a good idea?"

"We wont know if we don't try, right?"

I agreed with her, but I still wasn't sure this was the best idea out there.

I felt myself start to lean forward. She did the same and her eyes closed. I looked down at her face and remembered for a minute that she was only 16. It was now or never. Our lips were about a centimeter and a half from meeting and in that split second I had to decide, I switched course and gave her a kiss on the cheek. It wasn't just a peck, but it wasn't like I was making out with her cheek, either. It was somewhere between the two.

When I pulled away, I felt the need to get as far away as possible. I decided to go hunting early. Without looking back, I made a hasty retreat back up to camp, grabbing my stuff and stalked off into the forest to hunt. As I walked away from her, I was sure I heard her fall to her knees and start crying.

I had to bite back the urge to go and finish what I had started and stop those tears.

_No,_ I told myself, trudging further into the woods. _Now its time to hunt._


	16. Shane's Bitch Fit

KAIYA'S POV:

I was more than slightly embarrassed over what had happened down on the dock. I _had_ wanted him to kiss me, and for a few seconds it seemed like he had wanted to. But then he had leaned in and kissed me on the cheek instead.

I facepalmed and groaned. How could I be so stupid? He's 12 years older than me, he doesn't think like that about me! And I had practically thrown myself at him. This was so embarrassing! I wonder where he went.

I looked out of the window of my truck. I had come here seeking solitude for a few minutes after the scene at the dock. No one had come and tried to get into the locked doors, but Amy kept giving me some worried looks from the RV window.

I saw Amy run out of the RV and looked up to the top of the RV where Dale was sitting beside the CB. It seemed like other people were gathering around the RV, too. I got out of the truck and walked over, looking on curiously.

At first there was just static. Then I heard T-dog's voice mixed in with the fuzzy noises that sounded odd without an accompaniment of black and white on a TV screen. "Base camp, this is T-dog. Can anybody hear me?"

Dale picked up and said, "Hello? Hello?"

"Shane is that you?"

I stood beside Amy, looking up at Dale.

"Is that them?" Lori asked.

"We're trapped in the department store," T-dog's voice said.

I felt the bottom of my stomach drop away. Glenn was with them and they were trapped in a department store in Atlanta. I knew Amy was feeling the same way; Andrea was in that walker-infested hellhole too.

Shane ran an anxious hand through his hair. "He said they're trapped." It sounded like his voice broke slightly, but I could've been wrong.

"There are geeks all over the place, hundreds of them. we're surrounded."

"T-dog, repeat that last, repeat," Dale said. Was he just that old or did he seriously not hear that?

There was no answer. Only static.

"He said the department store," Lori said, Carl holding onto her arm and looking scared as hell.

"I heard it, too," Dale said. Surprising since you couldn't hear the part about all those walkers.

Lori stepped forward, "Shane-"

"No way," he said. "We do not go after them, we do not risk the rest of the group, ya'll know that."

I couldn't believe my ears. I was about ready to slap that stupid pig upside his smart little face when Amy stepped up."So we're just gonna leave her there?"

"Look Amy," Shane took a few steps toward her. "I know that this is not easy-"

"She volunteered to go. To help the rest of us."

Shane nodded, looking at the ground. "I know. But she knew the risks, right?" Just when I started thinking maybe he was finally saying something reasonable. "See, if she's trapped, she's gone."

That was exactly the same as saying Glenn, T-dog, Jacqui, Merle, and Morales were gone. Glenn was gone? No. The thought didn't feel right flitting through my mind.

"So we'll just have to deal with that. There's nothin' we can do."

"She's my sister you son of a bitch," Amy said in voice so calm it scared me half to death. For a minute I thought she was going to do what I had been feeling the need to do for the past few minutes and knock Shane one, but instead she ran down to the water.

I gave Shane my best death glare and ran after her. "Amy?" I called.

She was sitting cross-legged on the shore. I sighed and went to sit beside her.

"Do you really think they're gone?" Amy whispered.

I glanced at her. She looked like she was going to cry.

"No. They're going to come back," I said, thinking about Daryl words earlier. "Don't worry about them. They're gonna be fine."

She hesitated a moment and then nodded. There were a few more minutes of silence as we watched the clouds floating around in the azure sky before Amy asked quietly, "You're scared for them, aren't you? For Glenn?"

I nodded. "I cant imagine what it would be like to be trapped up there. I just hope they get back soon. Cant be too long, right?" I smiled over at her.

She gave me a small smile in return. "I saw you and Daryl today," Amy said out of nowhere.

"Wh- uh… What do you mean?" I asked, trying to play dumb.

"Down at the dock this morning. I saw you." She wasn't looking at me. She was eyeing the spot where Daryl and I had almost kissed. Almost. Sigh."He almost kissed you," Amy said, smiling.

"Yeah, but it didn't happen," I complained, laying back on the sand and gravel. "Ugh! Amy, why are guys so stupid?"

She shrugged.

"I mean, I was practically begging him to kiss me and he just backed out and kissed me on the cheek. I guess that's better than nothing, but still!"

She just sat and listened to my complaints.

Nothing more was said for bout 10 more minutes. Then I heard some branches snapping in the trees behind us.

"C'mon, lets get back up there before Shane throws another bitch fit," I said, standing and helping her up.

She laughed and stood, starting to walk.

I threw some suspicious glances to the trees and then followed Amy back up to camp, still grumbling about guys and mixed signals.

DARYL'S POV:

I had caught about 3 squirrels, but no such luck with deer or anything bigger. I stalked through the woods, crossbow up, searching for anything to satiate our hunger.

Then I heard talking. I figured I must've wandered down by the river, and started to turn back when I heard a familiar voice. It was Kaiya. "I just hope they get back soon. Cant be too long, right?"

There was a pause before that other girl, Amy, said, "I saw you and Daryl today."

I just about dropped everything in my hands. My heart beat a little faster and my palms got sweaty.

"Wh-uh… What do you mean?" Way to sound innocent, Kaiya.

"Down at the dock this morning. He almost kissed you."

Dammit. My face heated up at the memory of her lips so close to mine.

"Yeah, but it didn't happen," Kaiya said wistfully. "Ugh! Amy, why are guys so stupid? I mean, I was practically begging for him to kiss me and he just backed out and kissed me on the cheek. I guess that's better than nothing, but still!"

I stood in place and thought this over. Why exactly didn't I kiss her? Well, for one she was 16. And a part of me had really wanted to kiss her. That had scared all rationality out of me. I convinced myself it was because I had never seen a girl I had wanted and couldn't have. But even that was hard to admit. Did I want her? Ugh… Girls were confusing. It hadn't been this confusing for me since high school.

I turned around and immediately regretted it. My foot came crashing down on a stick.

"C'mon, lets get back up there before Shane throws a bitch fit." I wanted to laugh at that comment, but if I did, she'd know it was me in here.

They left and I shook my head, resuming my hunt.

Damn girl.


	17. Enter Rick Grimes

KAIYA'S POV:

It wasn't long before we heard the alarm of a car echoing off the hills around us. But there was something off about it. It sounded like I was moving.

Everyone ran to the "driveway" of the camp right behind the RV and saw someone in a red sports car pull up, alarm still blaring. The door opened and Glenn stepped out.

"Glenn," I whispered to myself, hardly believing my eyes. I ran forward, along with Amy, Shane, and Dale. I gave Glenn a hug, a single tear finding its way down my face.

Amy was right behind us, firing questions at him, asking about Andrea. Shane was leaning over the hood of the car yelling something I could hear over the car's noise.

Dale was closer than Shane, so I could hear him yell, "Turn that damn thing off!"

"I don't know how!" Glenn yelled back.

Shane banged on the hood and screamed, "Pop the hood!"

Glenn jumped and scurried into the car, opening the hood so he could pull the wires out and cease the blaring alarm.

"Where is she? Is she okay?" Amy asked.

Her questions didn't stop until Glenn answered exasperatedly, "Yeah, she is. They all are."

"Where are they? They're okay?" she asked, looking up the road where he had come from.

"Yes. Yeah they're fine, everybody is," he hesitated a second then corrected himself. "Well, Merle, not so much."

Oh God. Daryl was gonna flip out.

"What happened to Merle?" I asked, just as Shane started speaking.

"You crazy drivin' this wheelin' bastard up here? You tryin' to draw every walker for miles?" he yelled, leaning against the front of the car.

"I think we're okay," Dale said, looking up the road.

"You call being stupid okay?" Shane asked, looking over his shoulder at the old man.

"Well, that alarm was echoing all over these hills, it'd be hard to pinpoint the source." Dale muttered, looking around. Then he caught the challenging glare Shane was giving him. "I'm not arguing, I'm just saying!" Dale defended. He lifted a finger to point at Glenn. "It wouldn't hurt you to think things through a little more next time, could it?"

Glenn apologized sheepishly and pointed to the car. "I got a cool car."

I rolled my eyes and smiled.

Then a big white cube van pulled up. I assumed it was the others. Everyone turned to watch them pull in and Glenn smiled smugly at me.

The passenger door and the back opened up and people came pouring out, running up to their friends and family, hugging the life out of them. Andrea swung out of the side, running straight to Amy, who caught her in a hug mid-stride.

"You scared the shit out of me!" Amy accused, laughing. "She told me you'd make it, though."

Andrea must've known who she was talking about. She smiled at me over Amy's shoulder and mouthed a thank you. I nodded, throwing her a smile.

Morales got out of the van, too, his children and wife running to him.

I saw Lori bending down to talk to Carl. By the tears on both of their faces, I assumed it was about his father. I had heard Lori talk of him. He had been a police officer, partners with Shane, before all this zombie business. He had gotten shot and slipped into a coma. He had been gone before all this had even started.

"You are a welcome sight," Dale said, smiling warmly at Morales and giving the younger man a friendly embrace. Morales laughed and returned the hug. "I thought we had lost you folks for sure," Dale continued.

"How'd y'all get out of there, anyway?" Shane asked, shotgun in hand.

I was curious as well as to how they had gotten out of the trap they had informed us of, but I thought now, the time for reunion, was hardly the right time to talk about the monstrosities roaming Atlanta.

"New guy," Glenn said as T-dog and Jacqui walked up to the rest of the group, laughing and hugging everyone. "He got us out."

"Yeah," Morales said, looking back at the white van. "Crazy vato just got into town. Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello."

I was a little confused by the nickname, but I turned along with everyone else to watch for the man accompanying the slamming of the drivers side door of the van. It was a rather tall man with short brown hair and blue eyes.

"Guys a cop, like you," Morales said to Shane as the new guy walked up.

He was wearing a police uniform and when I saw Shane's unbelievable expression, I knew this was him. Rick Grimes. Lori's husband was alive.

The new guy gave Shane an equally unbelieving look and put his hands on his hips, seeming to be emotionally overwhelmed.

I turned around to see Carl still talking to his mom who was kneeled in front of him. Carl's attention slowly drifted over to the new addition to our ragtag group of survivors. Lori caught his change in interest and her head turned too. Both of their eyes widened in shock.

Rick took a deep breath, his eyes meeting theirs. He took an involuntary step back and pointed up at them, looking like he was fighting back tears. Then he started moving forward.

Carl smiled widely and started running towards his father.

What a relief it must have been, to think that your father was dead and then to see him, walking up to you without so much as a scratch.

"Dad!" Carl yelled as Lori ran after him.

He reached Carl and enfolded him in his arms, holding him to his chest as he collapsed on the ground, Lori standing and watching only a few inches away with indecision in her eyes. He stood, carrying Carl with him and walked to Lori, tears now dripping down his face.

I felt myself smiling and I didn't care to stop. It was a beautiful thing to see.

Lori grabbed him and hugged both of them.

I looked up at Glenn, still smiling. He smiled back.

In watching a man being reunited with his family, especially in times like this, I felt hope. And as I looked around at all the other campers, I knew they did, too.


	18. Lost

KAIYA'S POV:

I knew Daryl was going to kill someone when he came back. They had left Merle on top of the roof of that department store. Not only that, he was cuffed to a pipe up there. With geeks surrounding the place. Oh heads were gonna roll.

That night, after talking to Rick about everything he had been through, I went to bed, fearing Daryl's reaction the next day.

"Glenn?" I asked quietly when he slipped into the tent after me.

"Yeah?"

"I'm worried about Daryl. What he's gonna do when he finds out. How he's gonna feel." I whispered, unsure if he heard me.

I thought for sure he hadn't when he didn't answer, but eventually, he said, "It'll be fine. Just go to sleep. We'll worry about Daryl in the morning."

I frowned but nodded and closed my eyes.

I woke up the next morning and saw Carol doing some laundry. I decided to go help her and strung clothes up as she ironed. I noticed her and Rick talking and tried to not listen in on their conversation.

I saw Glenn standing over by his new car, which was now being stripped for parts by Morales, Dale, and Jim. He was pouting, his arms crossed and his mouth set in a scowl as he watched over the destruction of his new toy.

I laughed to myself and continued stringing up the clothes that needed to dry.

Shane pulled up in his jeep, announcing water a few minutes later. "Remember to boil before use!" he said, reminding me of the monotonous cadence of the directions on the back of a shampoo bottle. I'm not sure what shampoo would need to be boiled, though…

Screams were heard from the children, who had gone to play in the woods.

My heart raced and I bolted into the woods after the rest of the campers, hoping something terrible hadn't happened. We raced past tree after tree, following the voices of Carl and Sophia until we reached them.

There, a few yards away, a walker with gray, mottled skin was munching on a deer. His hair was stringy and it was impossible to tell what color it had been before. Thought he was facing away from us, I could tell he had once been a business man; he was in a suit.

All the men made a circle around it, holding various weapons up, ready to attack.

He didn't pay us any attention, just focused on the ripped open throat of the deer.

Amy and Andrea saw and choked back a gag, gasping as they backtracked. I, on the other hand, found it interesting in a sick, demented sort of way.

Then he stood, growling and snapping at the men.

Glenn pushed me back behind him and then the men started beating the walker down. They all beat him with their blunt objects, none of them thinking enough to get the head and destroy the brain. Then Dale came up with an axe and chopped the head off. That ceased the walker's movements.

"This is the first one we've had up here," Dale said, gesturing to the walker and breathing hard. "They never come this far up the mountain."

"They're runnin' out of food in the city, that's why," Jim said.

I moved a little closer, so I was standing between Glenn and Rick.

Some branches and leaves rustled in the trees behind Jim and we all tensed, men leveling their weapons.

Then Daryl hopped out from behind a rather large rock, a surprised look crossing his face when he saw all the weapons pointed at him. "Son of a bitch!" Daryl drawled, moving out of the leafy green of the forest behind him and steeping into the small clearing. "That's my deer!" he announced, pointing at the deer that the walker had been eating only a few minutes ago.

As I looked closer at it, I could see the red and yellow fletching of his arrows.

"Aw, look at it," he stepped forward, beginning to kick the walker in the side for every insult he gave it. "All gnawed on by this filthy! Disease-bearin'! Motherless! Poxy bastard!"

"Calm down, son, that's not helpin'," Dale reasoned.

Oh geez. I knew that was gonna get Daryl pissed. He wasn't exactly one to be told what to do.

"What do you know about it old man?" Daryl snarled, moving to stand in front of him, his face inches away.

Rick and Shane tried to keep him back, but I knew he probably wouldn't hurt Dale physically; he was a senior citizen.

"Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to On Golden Pond?"

I frowned but otherwise said nothing.

Daryl sighed and turned back to his lost deer. "Been trackin' this deer for miles. Was gonna drag it back to camp. Cook us up some venison," he explained, pulling arrows out of the deer's flanks.

I was surprised he was talking so much; he was usually very quiet around the rest of the group. Maybe he had just gotten a bit fed up with being quiet on his hunt.

"What do ya thank? Thank we can cut out this chewed up part right here?" he asked, making a circle around the wound with the tip of his arrow.

"Man, I would not risk that," Shane stated, his gun slung across his shoulders.

That was the only time Daryl seemed to agree to someone who shot down an idea of his. He just sighed and straightened, saying, "That's a damn shame. Well, I got some squirrel," he held up the string of squirrels dangling around his arm. "'Bout a dozen or so. That'll have to do."

No one complained; it was food and that was good enough for us.

The walker's head, which just happened to be right by my left foot opened its mouth and eyes, chomping at the air beside my ankle. I let out a soft squeak and tumbled down, landing on my butt in the dirt. Everyone tensed up once again. Amy and Andrea whimpered in disgust and turned away, walking back toward camp.

"Come on, people, what the hell?" Daryl said, aiming his crossbow at it.

I still hadn't bothered to pick myself up off the ground, so I jumped a bit when one of Daryl's arrows landed right in the head less than a few inches away from me.

He walked over and pulled the arrow out of the eye socket of the dead walker. "Its gotta be the brain. Don't y'all know nothin'?" he asked looking around. He wiped the blood off on his pants and then stored them with his others.

He looked down at me on the ground and I almost thought he was going to offer me his hand like he usually did, but he just gave me a nod, which I returned, and walked back to camp. I was confused as to why he had helped me up so many times before but now he didn't. What was different? Was it because of what happened down at the dock? Or just because there were other people here?

I shook my head and got up, dusting off my hind quarters and following everybody back to camp.

The first thing Daryl did when he got back to camp was call out, "Merle!"

I felt my stomach clench up. Oh God. This was it. I walked over to Shane's jeep and leaned against the hood of it, close enough to the RV to hear Amy and Andrea talking about how disgusting walkers are.

"Merle!" he called again, louder this time. "Get yer ugly ass out here!"

I smiled lightly at how cute his voice sounded when he said certain things. Then I realized that that was completely ridiculous and forced myself to smother the little display of happiness while Daryl got the news that no one really wanted to give him.

"Got us some squirrel! Stew 'em up!"

He was awfully talkative today. It was weird to see him talking so much around the other survivors. He had only ever really talked to Merle and I, saving all his insults for other verbal encounters.

"Daryl?" Shane asked, catching up to him.

Daryl turned around.

"Why don't you slow up a bit? I need to talk to you."

I sighed, leaning back against the hood of Shane's jeep.

Shane passed me, making eye contact. I nodded once.

Daryl noticed. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "'bout wha'?" He probably thought I ratted him out for trying to kiss an underage girl. I hoped he knew I didn't, but realized that soon enough, he would know the truth.

"About Merle," Shane continued walking past him when he stopped, giving me some curious glances.

I tried to keep my eyes on Shane, but I failed once and immediately regretted it.

In his eyes I could see confusion. Not confusion as to what was happening, confusion as to where he was, what he was doing, who he was. He seemed lost. No one but me could see that hidden deep in his bright blue eyes. Because not only did they not have the direct eye contact I was now holding with him, but they also didn't see him the way I did. They didn't take the time to try to understand him. He thought Merle was dead. He felt lost. The way I would have if I had lost Glenn.

I felt tears pricking at the edge of my eyes and looked down at the ground. Tears for Merle, because I really had grown to care a little bit about the crazy old hillbilly. But mostly tears for Daryl, because I knew how he felt, losing family.

"There was a problem in Atlanta," Shane continued, turning around and drawing Daryl's attention back to him.

Daryl looked around for a few moments, only the deepest part of his blue eyes betraying the hurt he was feeling. "He dead?" he asked, taking a few steps to the side.

"I'm not sure," Shane replied.

That got Daryl a little bit mad again. "He either is or he aint," he snarled half-heartedly, beginning to circle around Shane.

"There's no easy way to say this, so I'll just say it," Rick said, stepping forward.

I picked my foot up and rested the bottom of it on the grill of Shane's jeep behind me.

"Who're you?" Daryl asked distrustfully. He narrowed his eyes at him, shoulders back.

"Rick Grimes," Rick answered.

I could see from where I was the redness beginning to surround Daryl's eyes. Either he was about to cry, or he already was.

"Rick Grimes?" Daryl mocked, stepping forward, looking a bit intimidating. "You got somethin' ya wanna tell me?" he spit, his drawl intensifying with anger.

"Your brother was a danger to us all," Rick said.

Not a good way to start out. I didn't exactly like Merle, I didn't hate him, though. I had a strange kind of respect for him. I sort of cared what happened to him. Even if he was a sexist, racist, junkie.

"So I handcuffed him to a roof. Hooked him to a piece of metal."

Daryl's face smoothed out, calm besides the fury in his eyes. And that scared the hell out of me.

I noticed T-dog beginning to walk back toward camp, a pile of chopped wood in his arms.

"He's still there," Rick continued.

"Hold on," Daryl said, turning away from Rick.

I saw him rub a hand over his eyes and pushed myself off of the front of Shane's jeep, feeling the need to go to him. But I stayed where I was, tense and waiting for the worst.

"Let me process this!" he yelled, facing Rick again, a tear glimmering on his cheek. He pointed to his head with one finger and made a swirling motion, imitating the cogs of a clock spinning. "Ya sayin' ya handcuffed my brother to a roof?" he growled, veins popping out of his neck as he paced back and forth. "And ya left him there?" he yelled louder.

Rick just gave him a soft, "Yeah," and nodded, averting his eyes shamefully.

Daryl paced a bit more, his breath coming hard and his jaw clenched tight. Then he took the string of squirrels still in his hand and chucked them at Rick's face. Rick ducked and Daryl chose to use his moment of weakness to charge at him and catch him off guard.

Before he made it halfway to Rick, though, Shane jumped and shouldered Daryl to the side.

I ran forward, hands clenched. T-dog dropped the wood and came over. I ran toward Daryl who was laying on the ground, but he pulled a knife out of the sheath around his waist and Shane held his arm up, pulling me back with him.

"Watch the knife!"

Daryl sliced out at Rick, but he backed up the tiniest bit. Daryl let out a grunt of effort as he tried to shove at Rick with his shoulder.

But Rick grabbed him and Shane ran forward, releasing his hold on my arm, and holding onto Daryl's other arm. Shane got his arm around Daryl's neck and Rick let go, seeing that Shane had him handled. Rick grabbed the knife away from Daryl before backing up a few feet.

I wanted to go back over to them, but Amy was right beside me pulling me back over to the RV where she and Andrea fussed over me, wondering if I had gotten cut somehow in the tussle.

"Ya best let me go!" Daryl growled, Shane lowering him down onto the ground.

"Nah, I think its better if I don't," Shane said, as calmly as though he were simply denying some choices in betting on a football game.

"Chokehold's illegal!" Daryl struggled to get out.

"Yeah, you can file a complaint," Shane said.

Rick got down closer to him.

"Let him go!" I yelled, seeing the red shade his face was turning.

Daryl was letting out small pants in high pitches, almost like a whimper. Or as close to a whimper as you could get being Daryl.

"I would like to have a calm discussion on this topic, do you think we can manage that?" Rick asked, leaning down to look him in the eye.

Daryl wouldn't look directly at him though. I could see the redness still circling his eyes.

"Let him go!" I called again. I ignored the strange looks the people around us gave me.

"Do you think we can manage that?" Rick repeated.

I knew it hurt more than anything for Daryl to have to squeeze his eyes shut and nod, consenting to a rational discussion about his brother being stuck in Atlanta.

Rick nodded to Shane. Shane let him go.

"What I did was not on a whim," Rick started, still leaning down to where Daryl was now laying on the ground. "Your brother does not work or play well with others."

"Its not Rick's fault," T-dog spoke up, looking like he was contemplating whether or not to say more.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"I had the key. I dropped it."

"Ya couldn't pick it up?" Daryl asked, like he was talking to a child. I could hear the tears in his voice. And they were terrible.

"Well, I dropped it in a drain," T-dog said.

Daryl made a noise that sounded like a scoff, but by the way he tilted his head further down, I would say it was more of a choked sob. He stood up then, starting to walk away. "If that's s'posed to make me feel better, it don't."

"Maybe this will." That made a small spark of hope appear in Daryl's eyes. "I chained the door to the roof so the geeks couldn't get at him. With a padlock."

"That's gotta count for something," Rick reasoned.

Daryl turned to face him. Then he looked down at the ground, making a soft sniffling sound and contorting his face in a way that broke my heart. He rubbed at his eye again with the back of his hand. "To hell with all o' y'all!" he said, throwing his arm around to include almost everyone in the camp. His voice broke though, so I knew he only half meant it. "Just tell me where he is," he sounded so weak and broken. "So's I can go get him."

"He'll show you," Lori said, from beside me. "Isn't that right?"

Rick looked around and nodded slowly. "I'm going back."

Lori turned and walked back inside the RV.

Daryl walked past Rick to go and retrieve his crossbow where he'd set it on a folding lawn chair. He started to walk away, keeping his gaze on the ground.

But I followed after him.


	19. Comfort

DARYL'S POV:

I cant believe I cried in front of those fucking assholes back at camp. I stalked off toward my tent, careful not to look up and show anyone how much pain I was in.

That was my brother up on top of that roof in that damned city. My only living relative was trapped on a roof with psychopathic cannibals surrounding him.

I sat heavily on the sleeping bag in my tent and set my crossbow off to the side. Now that I was out of the public eye, I let a few tears spill over. I laid back, one leg bent with the bottom of my foot on the ground.

I heard something outside and looked up. I could see a shadow silhouetted against the fabric of the tent. I rolled my eyes and cleared my throat. "What do ya want, Kaiya?"

She stomped a foot petulantly, making me smirk a bit. "How'd you know it was me?" she asked, still on the outside of the tent.

"I can see yer shadow."

She crossed her arms, shifting around on her feet. "You can tell who I am by my shadow?" It seemed like that wasn't really what she had come here to talk about.

"Kaiya, ya can come in," I sighed, trying to dry up any tears.

The zipper made an unzipping noise and Kaiya stepped in, not making eye contact with me until the tent flap was closed back up again. She sat cross-legged to the right of me. Then she looked up, her brown eyes meeting mine. They weren't quite brown though. More like sand-colored.

"What'd ya need?" I asked softly, looking down at my hands.

She reached forward and laid a hand over mine.

I looked up at her, startled.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly. Concern filled her eyes.

I opened my mouth to speak, but I couldn't make the lie come out. "No," I eventually said, shaking my head and looking back down, not bothering to shake her hand off mine.

Her hands were so tiny. Her hand was draped over mine, barely taking up half the space of the back of my hand.

She noticed me staring at our hands and started to pull away, saying, "Oh, right, sorry."

But, without thinking, I grabbed her hand and said, "No, its okay."

I was glad Merle wasn't here to see this, but at the same time, I would've rather him be here to witness my softness than be stuck up on that department store.

I frowned, rolling over on my right side so that I was facing her. I used one arm to prop up my head and the other hand, I set between us, keeping hers on mine. I didn't want to be completely blatant in my attraction to the girl, but I also didn't want to lose the soft touch she gave me.

I kept my gaze focused on our hands, but I saw her lift a hand and bring it closer to my face. I brought my eyes back up to hers, my head still tilted down.

She jerked her hand back a tiny bit, then continued moving it forward slowly. Kind of like when you are trying to pet a stray dog and it moves forward and you freak out then keep going anyway, only much slower. Finally, her hand cupped my cheek and her thumb rubbed across the spot under my eye, spreading wetness.

Damn. Guess I missed a tear.

I scowled and looked down.

"Hey," she whispered.

I made a noncommittal noise and kept my eyes trained on her hand over mine.

Her hand moved away from mine and she used both hands on either side of my face to lift my gaze up to her. She was up on her knees, looking down at me with worry. "He's gonna be okay."

I really wanted to believe her. And maybe, if T-dog really had padlocked the door, he would be okay. But my luck just doesn't work that way.

I tried to give a small smile, for Kaiya's sake, but it was quickly washed away by a few tears that were made embarrassingly audible.

She looked like she wanted to cry seeing me like this. She tugged on my arm, pulling me into a sitting position.

The tears wouldn't stop now. What the hell, I don't even care anymore. Bring on the water works.

She wrapped her arms around my shoulders, and I didn't hesitate to wrap mine around her waist. I cried into the side of her neck.

I felt her hand running over my hair. It felt nice. It reminded me of my mom. She was always fussing over my hair when I was little. Constantly smoothing it down. It used to get annoying and I would scowl, but now the reminder of my mother comforted me. My mom. That's another family member I had lost. Even before the walkers came to town. The thought of how little I had left made my sobs a bit more forceful.

I thanked God Kaiya was here to muffle them, to hold me, to talk to me. I just thanked God for Kaiya. She seemed to be the only one that really cared about me besides Merle. And even he hardly seemed like he ever cared.

I held her tighter.

"Shhh," she whispered. "Its okay." Her words were soothing, calm.

I started to quiet. When the tears stopped altogether, I didn't let go of her. "Thank you," I whispered, my voice quivering a little.

"No problem," she said, still stroking my hair.

I smiled against the side of her neck.

She giggled a little.

"What?" I asked, suddenly worried she was gonna think I was some kind of pansy.

"That just tickles. Your stubble is scratchy," she explained, smiling.

I started moving my face around on her neck, trying to tickle her now. She giggled uncontrollably, falling over. I fell over with her.

In a single second, I went from tickling her neck with my chin to kissing up and down her neck, trailing them up to her cheek. I grabbed her face in my hands, looking into her eyes.

"Daryl," she whispered. She wanted me to do this, I knew it. I could tell in the way she said my name. Not just now, but every time.

I leaned in slowly and finally, my lips met hers. Her lips were soft and wet. Her back arched under me and she grabbed on to the front of my shirt. With her other hand, she squeezed my arm. I slid my hands back, entwining my fingers in her hair. She ran her tongue over my bottom lip, nicking it with her teeth. I grabbed onto the bottom of her leg and pulled it up, next to my side.

We were both breathing deeply and still kissing when we heard Glenn call, "Kaiya!"

We jumped apart. My heart pounded and I kept my wide eyes on the ground as she flattened her hair and stood up, exiting the tent.

"I'm over here, Glenn!" Kaiya called, zipping the tent back up behind her.

I heard him walk over and whisper frantically, "What were you doing in there with him?"

I held my breath, hoping she didn't have it written all over her face.

"Oh calm down Glenn. I was just talking to him. He did just lose his brother," she said, real sadness leaking in at the end.

As their footsteps faded away, I sighed and laid back down on my sleeping bag, rubbing at my eyes.

I could almost hear Merle like he was sitting in here right now, accusing me of doing inappropriate thing with a minor. "_Hoo! You almost fucked little miss sweet sixteen!_"

I kept my hands over my eyes. "No I didn't."

"_My baby brother's a goddamn cradle-robber!_" his voice laughed, finding this terribly amusing.

"Kaiya was right," I muttered, rolling over.

"_What do ya mean?_"

"Shut the fuck up Merle."


	20. Merle

KAIYA'S POV:

"I'm going with you," I said to Glenn, grabbing my rifle out of my bag.

He shook his head. "No. You're not. You're going to stay here and stay safe."

I turned to look at him, setting the gun down. "Glenn, I'm a way better shot than you, I run faster than you, and I might even know the streets better than you."

He seemed to seriously consider it for a moment before saying, "You gotta go ask Rick. If he says no, you stay here, deal?"

I thought about it and then nodded, holding my hand out.

He shook it, grinning smugly.

He was so about to lose.

I exited the tent, heading straight for Rick, who had just gotten done talking to his family. "Rick," I called, jogging up to him.

He turned. "Yeah? Kaiya, right?"

I nodded, smiling. "Do you mind if I go with you guys?"

He started to open his mouth to refuse, but I cut him off.

"Look, I don't want Glenn going in there again and getting stuck again. I don't want to be here if that happens. I want to be there with him. He's like my brother. I would feel better if I was with him. Plus, I can shoot. My dad used to take me hunting all the time and I even have my own guns. I'm smaller and faster than any one of you, and I've got a pretty good knowledge of the Atlanta streets."

With all these good points in my argument, I could see he was finding it harder and harder to say no. But he looked conflicted still.

"What's it gonna be, sheriff?" I asked, smirking.

He smiled and nodded. "Alright, but Glenn had better not kill me for this."

I laughed and nodded, turning and walking away. I walked back into the tent where Glenn was pulling out his pistol. I grinned at him and he groaned.

"He said yes?"

I nodded, grabbing my rifle and sorting through my bag for a bandana. I tied my hair up with a ponytail and then tied the bandana just under the band. I was wearing jeans and a loose grey tank top. I left the tent to find Shane confronting Rick about the trip into Atlanta.

"Could you just tell me why? Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?"

"Hey!" I barked.

"Choose your words more carefully," Daryl threatened evenly, pointing some of his arrows at Shane.

"Oh, no I did. Douche bags what I meant," Shane replied haughtily.

Daryl growled and I rolled my eyes.

"Merle Dixon," Shane sneered. "Guy wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dying of thirst."

I stepped forward, Glenn following me and stood beside Carol who was pampering her husband ridiculously as he sat on his fat lazy ass and ordered her around… like always.

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me," Rick said. I felt a little more respect for the man with this statement. "I cant let a man die of thirst. Thirst and exposure. We left him like an animal caught in a trap. That's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being."

Shane let out a few scoffs through Rick's reasonable speech.

Lori spoke up and we turned to her as she talked, but my face heated up when I noticed Daryl watching me. "So you and Daryl? That's your big plan?"

Rick slowly turned to Glenn, who only nodded, exasperated. He obviously hadn't wanted to go.

"That's just great, now you're gonna risk three men, huh?" Shane pouted.

I stepped forward. "And one woman."

This caused a little bit of an uproar. Amy and Andrea glared accusingly at Rick who just nodded. Daryl looked about ready to throw a fit and Shane clenched his jaw even tighter. So the uproar was mostly silent. But still, an uproar.

"Four men," T-dog said.

I crossed my arms and raised a brow at him. "I am not a man," I argued, making a few tense smiles appear on some of the campers faces.

But T-dog shook his head. "I'm going, too."

Daryl scoffed and turned his attention back to the arrows in his hands. "My day just gets better and better, don't it?" He wiped the end of an arrow off with a red rag.

"You see anybody else here steppin' up to save your brother's cracker ass?"

"Why you?" Daryl asked, yanking the rag down the shaft of the arrow.

"You wouldn't even begin to understand," T-dog said, shifting uncomfortably. "You don't speak my language."

"That's five," Dale said, looking around.

"Its not just five," Shane said. Everyone's attention was turned back to him. "You're putting every single one of us at risk. Just know that, Rick. I mean, come on, you saw that walker it was _here_, it was _in camp_. They're moving out of the city and if they come back, we need every able body we got. We need them here. We need them to protect camp."

Rick didn't seem fazed at all. "Seems to me what you really need most here," he hesitated. I hoped he was about to tell Shane off. "are more guns."

Damn. Oh well, guns are good, too.

"Yeah," Glenn muttered, suddenly remembering something. "The guns."

"Wait, what guns?" I asked, stepping forward.

Shane nodded, also confused.

"Six shotguns, two high-powered rifles, over a dozen hand guns," Rick listed.

"Damn," I breathed. "That's a lot of metal."

Dale nodded.

"I cleaned out the cage back at the station before I left. I dropped the bag in Atlanta when I got swarmed. Its just sitting there on the street waiting to be picked up." Rick looked for any sign that Shane was giving in to the plan.

Not that we weren't going to Atlanta if Shane didn't consent. I knew at least Daryl and I would still be making our way out there for our lost man.

"Ammo?" Shane asked after a moment's hesitation.

"Seven hundred rounds assorted," Rick said.

Shane twitched in pleasure with the prospect of that much firepower. That could keep us protected for quite some time.

"You went through hell to find us," Lori said. "Y-you just got here and you're gonna turn around and leave?"

"Dad, I don't want you to go," Carl said.

I frowned. I could understand that and I thought it might be a good idea if Rick stayed, too. He had just found his family and Glenn, Daryl, T-dog and I could handle this on our own. But I understood that he had chained Merle to the roof and he needed to be there when we found him.

Rick turned to face both of them.

"To hell with the guns," Lori started. "Shane is right. Merle Dixon? He's not worth one of your lives, even with guns thrown in."

I saw Daryl scowl but kept his head down as she spoke.

"Tell me. Make me understand," she said, standing up as Rick walked to her.

"I owe a debt to a man I met and his little boy, Lori." Lori looked like she was going to argue again. "If they hadn't taken me in, I'd have died." That shut her up. "Its because of them that I made it back to you at all. They said they'd follow me to Atlanta. They'll walk into the same trap I did if I don't warn them."

"What's stopping you?"

"The Walkie talkie in the bag I dropped. He's got the other one and our plan was to connect when they got closer."

"Is it our walkies?" Shane asked, sitting on the bumper of his jeep.

"Yeah," Rick admitted.

"So use the CB, what's wrong with it?" Andrea asked.

"CB's fine, it's the walkies that suck to crap. Date back to the 70's, don't match any bandwidth, not even the scanners in our cars," Shane replied, scratching the side of his face.

"I need that bag," Rick said quietly, begging Lori with his eyes, pleading with her to let him go.

She leaned her head down in defeat and Rick walked past her to Carl. He kneeled down to his height. "Okay?" he asked the small boy.

Carl thought for a moment, then nodded.

Rick nodded, smiling.

Amy and Andrea found me after the group of people dispersed.

"You better not go getting yourself killed, kid," Andrea joked, smiling.

"Seriously, though, make it back to us alive and unbitten," Amy added, giving me a tight hug.

After Andrea gave me a hug, too, Glenn and I walked over to the white van we would be taking and got into the front seats. Glenn backed the truck up, I sat in the passenger's seat, Daryl stood in the open back, and T-dog and Rick were bargaining with Dale for a pair of bolt cutters.

Daryl shoved Glenn's shoulder, pushing him into the window and kicked at the steering wheel, honking the horn with his foot.

I rolled my eyes.

"C'mon, lets go!"

I moved into the back with Daryl and T-dog, knowing that Rick would want shotgun and someone would need to keep the peace between the two.

Shane and Rick were standing at the rear bumper, looking through a black bag. Shane handed him 5 bullets and then Rick started walking to the passenger side door.

Daryl pulled the door to the back shut as we pulled away and then sat down, his back against the right wall. T-dog sat against the left wall. I sat with my back pressed up to the door.

Nothing was said for quite a while.

I just clung to my rifle and listened to the jolting motions the van made as we drove over asphalt and gravel.

"He'd better be okay," Daryl said, glaring menacingly at T-dog. "This is my only word on the matter."

"I told you the geeks cant get at him," T-dog said, gripping the bolt cutters. "The only thing that's gonna get through that door is us."

Daryl wiped at his mouth with a rag.

"Can you guys just please chill your balls?" I asked, rubbing my temples and crossing my legs.

They both gave me weird looks, but my saying worked and they shut up.

The van stopped and Glenn shut the engine off. "We walk from here."

Daryl opened the back of the van and hopped out. T-dog and I were a little behind him.

I patted his arm sympathetically. "He'll come around," I said when the bald man looked down at me. He didn't look like he believed that a single bit, but we both got out of the van anyway.

There was a large brick building to our right and fences all around us. We were parked half-way on railroad tracks. We ran down them, following Glenn and looking out for any potential danger.

Glenn led us to a spot under a bridge and pushed open a spot he had cut out of a chain link fence. It was a bit smaller than him, but just my size, so that no walkers following us would be able to get through right away. Rick ducked through first, then Daryl, then me, then T-dog, and Glenn came last, holding the fence open and closing it back up when we were all through.

"Merle first or guns?" Rick asked.

"Merle. We aint even havin' this conversation," Daryl barked.

"We are," Rick said, authority thick in his voice. He turned to Glenn. "You know the geography, its your call."

"Merle's closest," Glenn said, all of us starting to run. "The guns would mean doubling back. Merle first."

We ran down streets and around corners until finally, we came to a large department store with the glass front doors busted. It looked deserted of walkers.

"That's it," Rick breathed as we rounded the corner of a bank.

We ran across the alley to it and came in through the front doors, careful not to make a noise.

I gripped the strap of my rifle and twisted it so that it was kind of wrapped around my arm but it was still in my hand. I looked down the sights at everything surrounding me, cautious of anything that moved besides my four companions.

Rick held his hand up signaling for us to stop. Then he held two fingers up to his eyes and used them to point across the large front counter and behind a pillar where a walker was wandering around, bumping clothes racks and jewelry displays everywhere she went.

She didn't seem to notice us.

Daryl snuck forward silently. He leveled his crossbow and maneuvered around a few clothes racks until he was standing in front of her, but not directly. "Damn," he whispered. "What an ugly skank."

She seemed to realize he was insulting her, because that was when she chose to growl at him.

He pulled the trigger and it flew, whizzing through the air until it pierced her head, sticking through the other side. She fell with a muffled thud to the carpeted floor. Then we moved forward.

I don't know why Glenn didn't have his pistol out, but instead he was carrying a flashlight.

Daryl bent down to retrieve his arrow and wiped it off on his pants leg.

We found a door in the back and went through it, finding sets and sets of stairs. We could all feel the anticipation building as we raced up the stairs. Then we came to a chained up door. Merle was just on the other side.

I almost smiled at the thought of having that crazy old redneck back, calling me baby doll and even making fun of me for not knowing how to gut a squirrel.

We all held our weapons up just in case any walkers had been thin enough to squeeze through the space between the door and the jamb as T-dog cut the lock around the chains.

Daryl kicked the door open at the first chance he got, yelling, "Merle!"

We all raced outside, but I was the last out, so I was the last to see what remained of Merle.

His bloodied hand was laying under a pair of blood-covered handcuffs, cut off at the wrist.

"No!" Daryl yelled. "No!" He paced back and forth, tears coming once again at the sight. He glared up at T-dog who glanced around guiltily.

I felt a few tears let loose, too. I grabbed onto Glenn's hand. He frowned down at me, but squeezed it gently.

Merle was gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Review please! Happy New Year's! :D <strong>


	21. Grabbing the Bag

DARYL'S POV:

I breathed hard and stared down at my brother's sawed off hand. Blood was splattered across the white pipe he had been chained to and was dripping from his end of the cuffs.

I paced back and forth, fuming. I spun around and pulled my crossbow up with a grunt. I leveled it at T-dog's head. It was his fault my brother was gone.

But Rick had his gun pointed straight at my temple, ceasing any further movements from me. I heard Kaiya let out a frightened squeak behind us. My breathing was uneven and pant-y even. I could feel myself shaking, but the crossbow didn't show it.

We stayed like that for a few very tense minutes before Rick said, "I wont hesitate. I don't care if every walker in the city hears it."

I blinked hard a few times, tears threatening forcefully once again. I dropped the crossbow, eyes still closed.

Rick un-cocked his gun and lowered it as T-dog breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

I kept my glare focused on T-dog, though. Then I looked down and tried to blink the blurriness out of my eyes. "You- uh… gotta do-rag or somethin'?" I asked, trying to keep my tone level.

He reached into one of the pockets of his cargo pants and pulled out a blue rag.

I walked closer to the hand and propped my crossbow up against the pipe. Then I bent down to his hand. I laid the rag down next to the hand and started to pick it up by the pinkie. "I guess the, uh, the saw blade was too dull for the hand cuff." I twisted it around between my fingers. "Ugh… Aint that a bitch?" I set it in the middle of the rag and folded it up, sighing. I stood up with the wrapped up hand and turned to the others.

I saw Kaiya holding Glenn's hand while a few tears dripped silently down her face. The expression she wore didn't fit the tears, though. She looked strong and determined, not grieved and tearful.

I grabbed Glenn by the backpack strap and turned him around. I opened the top of the bag and set it inside. "He must've used a tourniquet. Maybe his belt. He'd have lost more blood if he didn't." I grabbed my crossbow and walked back to the blood stains. I followed the blood stains.

T-dog retrieved the bag of tools Dale had wanted us to bring back and the other three followed me.

The blood drops led to a door.

I lifted my bow so that everything ahead of me was in the sights of my weapon and ducked around the corner, spying around the inside of the door. Rick held his gun in his right hand, using his left to steady the butt. Kaiya had her rifle drawn, gripping it fiercely. I had to admit she was pretty adorable with a gun. Wait… What?

"Merle!" I called down the stairs beside us. "You in here?"

We started walking slowly and cautiously down the stairs. We came to the ground level and I walked into an office-looking room where one walker was lurking. She was kind of fat looking and her bottom jaw was missing, leaving her bloody tongue hanging out disgustingly.

"Ew…" I heard Kaiya whisper beside me. Huh… I hadn't realized she was so close to me. "That's nasty."

I brought my crossbow up and shot straight through the walker's forehead.

We moved stealthily forward, peeking around every corner, tiptoeing over every object laying askew on the ground. When we came out of the door, we met up in a hall with Rick and the other two. Guess Kaiya was the only one that followed me through the room.

The hall was long and very dim, but there was just enough light seeping through the windows for us to see. We came into another office at the end of the hall. There were two walkers laying dead on the floor with a bunch of papers strewn about.

"Had enough in him to take these two sum o' bitches. One handed," I muttered, walking around the large room. I put an arrow in the crossbow and started pulling it back to cock it. "Toughest asshole I ever met, my brother. Feed him a hammer and he'd crap out nails."

I noticed Kaiya smirk at the statement out of the corner of my eye.

"Any man could pass out from blood loss," Rick said, making me frown. "No matter how tough he is."

We moved through the room, looking for any other signs that Merle had been here. We came to another doorway, where carpet met tile. On the light brown-red tiles, telltale blood droplets were leading our way.

"Merle?" I called out again.

"We're not alone here, remember?" Rick murmured, getting a little closer to me.

I looked into the tiled room. It looked like some kind of kitchen. "Screw that," I said. "He could be bleedin' out ya said so yerself."

We moved farther into the room. One of the burners of a stove was lit and still burning. There was blood dripping down the front of the stove and his belt was laying on the surface of the counter next to the stove. Rick noticed an old iron with bits of skin fried onto it and picked it up.

"What's that burned stuff?" Glenn asked, eyeing the iron warily.

"Skin," Kaiya whispered, not quite as appalled as I thought a teenage girl would be at the grisly mess.

"He cauterized the stump."

Glenn looked like he was gonna be sick.

Kaiya shoved him playfully and mumbled, "Don't be such a girl." then walked past him with her rifle up.

"I told ya he's tough," I said, eyeing Rick. "Nobody can kill Merle but Merle."

"Don't take that on faith, he's lost a lot of blood," Rick said, looking around at the bloody mess Merle had made.

"Yeah?" Kaiya asked from where she was, looking out what looked like a smashed window. We walked over to her. "Didn't stop him from busting out of this death trap."

I grinned.

"He left the building?" Glenn asked, sounding terrified. "Why the hell would he do that?"

"Why wouldn't he?" I asked, leaning down and inspecting the broken shards of glass. "He's out there alone as far as he knows. Doin' what he's gotta do. Survivin'."

"You call that survivin'?" T-dog asked as I turned and walked past him. "Just wanderin' out in the streets, maybe passin' out? What are his odds out there, huh?"

I glared at him. "No worse than being handcuffed and left to rot by you sorry pricks."

T-dog looked away, familiar guilt flooding his eyes.

Kaiya frowned, but I tried to ignore it.

I walked up to Rick and stood right in front of him. "You couldn't kill him. I aint so worried 'bout some dumb dead bastard."

Rick returned my gaze evenly. "What about a thousand dumb dead bastards? Different story?"

"Why don't ya take a tally? Do what ya want, imma go get him," I started to walk past Rick and out the window, but he held a hand to my chest, pushing me back. "Get yer hands off me! Ya cant stop me!"

"I don't blame you. He's family, I get that. I went through hell to find mine. I know exactly how you feel." Something about the look in his eyes made me believe that and calmed me down a little. "He cant get far with that injury. We could help you check a few blocks around but only if we keep a level head."

I nodded. "I could do that." At least they were helping me find him and not just abandoning the search because the trail ran cold.

He nodded once and looked over my shoulder at the rest of them.

"Only if we get those guns first," T-dog said. "I'm not strollin' the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions, okay?"

"You don't have a gun?" Kaiya asked, stepping out from behind Glenn.

He looked at her and shook his head.

"Well, shit, if you had told me that, I could've let you use my shotgun."

I smirked. It would figure that she had another gun.

Rick frowned at her language.

I had to say, though, I kinda liked the way she cussed like a sailor. It was cute. Ugh! Why do I have to keep thinking things are cute? Things aren't cute! I had to bite back a groan, but I kept it in as we moved on.

We moved into another office and Glenn began drawing on the tile in a permanent marker. I highly doubted that anyone was going to charge him with vandalism, so what the hell.

When he was done speaking, Rick said, "You're not doing this alone."

"Even I think it's a bad idea and I don't even like you much," I muttered.

"It's a good idea," Glenn defended. "Just hear me out. If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast."

"But I can move faster," Kaiya said quietly.

"What?" T-dog asked.

"I'll go," she said, sitting up straighter and getting a fiery look of determination in her eyes. "I'm faster than Glenn and I'm smaller, more places for me to fit that I can hide behind if a walker sees me."

Everyone in the room saw that this plan had a better chance of being executed properly with her in the center, but no one wanted to allow her to go out on her own.

"No," Glenn said.

She grabbed his arm and turned him toward her. "Glenn, I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. Besides, you know I'm right. Now summarize your plan to me, I've been having an ADD moment over in that corner playing with some sticky tack."

All of us rolled our eyes at her and listened once again as Glenn hesitantly relayed the plan to her.

"That's the tank," he said, pointing to a clip positioned between two buildings. Five blocks from where we are now." Then he grabbed a wadded up sticky note and placed it in front of the tank/clip. "That's the bag of guns. Here's the alley I dragged Rick into when we first met." He pointed to a corner just on the other side of the building from the tank. "That's where you Daryl and I will go."

"Why me?" I asked on impulse.

"Your crossbow is quieter than his gun," Glenn pointed out, gesturing between Rick and I.

Valid point.

He picked up a random small tape dispenser and set it in the alley where he, Kaiya, and I were going to go. "While Daryl waits here in the alley, you run up the street, grab the bag."

She nodded.

"Rick and T-dog will be waiting in this alley over here in case." He picked up an eraser and put it up the street from the bag and the tank.

"Two blocks away, why?" Rick asked.

"She may not be able to come back the same way. Walkers might cut her off. If that happens she cant go back here," he gestured to Daryl's marker. "to Daryl. She'll move forward instead. All the way around to that alley where you guys are. Whichever direction she goes, she's got us in both directions to cover her." He still sounded like he didn't want to let her go out there on her own and I thought it was dumb, too. But if short round was right, she would be just fine. "Afterwards, we'll all meet back here," Glenn concluded.

"Hey, kid, what'd ya do before all this?" I asked, gazing up at him.

"Delivered pizzas," he answered simply. "Why?"

Rick gave a funny look to the ground upon hearing this odd piece of information.

I nodded and shrugged. It made sense.

* * *

><p><strong>Remember to review! Hope you liked it! :D <strong>


	22. Abducted

KAIYA'S POV:

We snuck down the ladder down into the alley, Glenn glancing cautiously up and down the alley. Glenn climbed down first, then me, then Daryl. I wouldn't admit that I had a pretty nice view. When we hit the ground, I handed my rifle off to Glenn and gave him a hug.

"Remember what I told you," Glenn murmured.

I nodded and pulled out of the hug.

When Daryl jumped down, I turned to him. I was going to hug him too, but before I could, he walked around me and picked his crossbow up and started walking to the end of the alley.

I frowned but followed suit. We ran up to a dumpster and ducked behind it, looking out for any walkers. Then we moved forward to another one that was closer to the gate at the end of the alley.

Daryl cocked his crossbow and readied it for action. "Don't get yerself killed out there, kid." He didn't look at me as he said it.

I just nodded once and started to run out from behind the dumpster and out into the street. I felt my palms sweating and my heart beating faster than normal as I stole up the street, running as fast as I could till I was behind a busted up car. There was a walker pretending to be for real dead and its head snapped up, smelling me as I crouched beside its bed.

I jumped and ran to the car right in front of it, keeping low. There were three walkers stumbling around in front of the car, but they didn't seem to notice me. I stuck close to the back of the car, keeping down so they didn't see me. When they were far enough away for me to run to the next "safe zone" I took off. I

jumped over a pile of sandbags the army had put up as a barricade just before all this shit happened.

There was the bag, just beside a large tank the army had probably used to shoot down walkers in the streets, back when walkers weren't the majority of the population and we still had a glimmer of hope for surviving.

_Okay, Kaiya, time to stop feeling sorry for yourself and what's left of humanity. Run out there and get that bag! _I shook my head a few times before darting out into the middle of the street.

I skidded to a stop and yanked at the straps of the black sheriff's bag, guns clinking together. I started to run back around the tank and go back the way I came from, but I remembered something I had seen sitting on the ground. I turned back on my heel and bent to retrieve the sheriff's hat laying on the ground next to the bag.

"Rick had better appreciate this," I muttered moodily as I turned back and started to run again.

There were walkers gaining on me. I swallowed back a scream and ran back to the pile of sandbags, running up the slight slope they created and jumping over the metal fence beside it.

I heard the slight echo of a young boy speaking Spanish. I thought maybe I was losing my mind and just kept running back to the alley.

When I made it back into the alley's gate, I saw two big Mexicans kicking the shit out of Daryl and Glenn, and another Mexican laying on the ground next to them. He looked about my age.

"Glenn, Daryl!" I called, watching as the men beat them with a pipe and a bat. They looked up and saw me.

I started to turn back.

"That's it! That's the bag!" one of them yelled.

The other one started to run at me. He tried to grab the bag from me, but I wouldn't let go. He shoved me down and grabbed the bag, the other one pushing on my shoulders to keep me down.

I heard an arrow whiz through the air and one of the men screamed, but I couldn't see because my face was still being shoved into asphalt. I heard a car's motor nearing and was hauled to my feet. They started dragging me out of the alleys gate, but I was facing Glenn and Daryl.

"Help! Glenn! Daryl!" I yelled.

"Kaiya!" They yelled in unison.

I turned my head to look out of the alley. There was a walker more close to us than I was comfortable with and I was sure there were more, but I couldn't see around the creep that had a hold on me.

They used the bat to hit the walker upside the face.

I was still yelling for Glenn and Daryl when they got to their feet and started running to the fence. I was being pulled back into a car. They shoved me in, and shut the door, but I could still hear Glenn and Daryl screaming my name.

A bag was put over my head and I leaned over, my head swimming a bit. I put my face right up next to what I could only estimate was someone else's and said, "Does this smell like chloroform to you?"

Then I passed out.

* * *

><p><strong>Dont forget to review! :)<strong>


	23. Kaiya and Miguel

DARYL'S POV:

I had gotten one arrow in one of those bitches asses. But that hadn't been enough to stop them from taking Kaiya.

Glenn and I pulled the gate closed and we were still yelling after the car. When I turned around, my vision was reddened with rage.

I started to run for that little ingrate that caused all of this. Not only had they gotten the guns because of him, but now they had Kaiya. And god knows what they were planning on doing to her.

I grabbed the boy by the shirt and tossed him up against a wall.

Rick ran up the alley with T-dg and restrained me and yelled, "Stop it!"

"I'm gonna kick yer nuts up into yer throat!" I threatened the boy.

He seemed to be around Kaiya's age. T-dog held him against the wall.

"Let me go!" he yelled at T-dog.

"Chill out!" T-dog yelled back, pushing him harder against the wall.

"They took Kaiya!" Glenn yelled.

"Little bastard and his asshole friends. I'm gonna stomp yer ass!" I pointed at him.

Glenn was too broken down to do anything more than cry. T-dog pointed out that we were cut off. I looked behind us. Walkers were pressing up against the gate. Thank God that was the way it closed.

T-dog grabbed the boy by the arm and started running up the alley back to our rendezvous point. Glenn ran after them and Rick grabbed the guns. One of those guys had dropped them when he got shot in his rear. Then he grabbed the hat Kaiya had probably grabbed and we took off down the alley.

When we got to the office, we sat the kid in a chair and Rick gave him the good cop drill. Guess I was gonna have to play bad cop. Good. I could use all my pent up rage.

"Those men you were with, we need to know where they went."

The kid had blood dripping out of the side of his mouth and he didn't bother wiping it off as he said, "I aint tellin' you nothing."

"Jesus, man," T-dog groaned. "What the hell happened back there?"

"I told you," I growled. "This little turd and his douche bag friends came out of nowhere and jumped me and Glenn."

The kid sneered. "Man you're the one who jumped me. Screaming about tryin' to find his brother like its my damn fault."

"They took Kaiya," I snarled. "They could've taken Merle, too."

"Merle?" the kid said. "What kind of hick name is that? I wouldn't name my dog Merle."

I jumped forward, my boot in the air, ready to pull through on that whole ass-stomping threat earlier.

But Rick pulled me back. "Daryl, back off!"

I took a few steps back, glaring at the kid. If he hadn't shown up, Kaiya would be here right now. I walked over to Glenn and turned him around, digging through his backpack. I plucked out the folded up blue rag.

"Wanna see what happened to the last guy that pissed me off?" I asked, unwrapping the hand. I dumped it into his lap.

He jumped and squirmed, falling onto the floor.

I moved forward, grabbing him by the collar. "We'll start with the feet this time."

Rick pulled me off of him then bent down to him. "The men you were with took our friend. All we wanna do is talk to them, see if we can work something out."

He looked like he was nodding.

We snuck around on the outside of a crumbling brick wall bordering a old garage with spray paint everywhere.

T-dog went to sit up on top of a neighboring building's roof and scope out the guy we were talking to. Just as a safety precaution. Our safety at least…

I looked down at the kid who was sitting on the ground. "One wrong move," I said. "You get an arrow to the ass, just so ya know."

"G's gonna take the arrow outta my ass and shove it up yours," he glanced cockily up at me. "Just so YOU know."

Little bastard.

"G?" Rick asked.

"Guillermo. He the man here."

Rick stuck a few more rounds into his gun and said, "Okay then." He looked up at me. "Lets go see Guillermo."

I kicked the kid in the ass as he started to stand and followed Rick and Glenn through the hole in the brick wall, making our way up to the garage. I tried to block out images of what those spics could be doing to Kaiya in there and concentrate on what we were doing, but I found myself anxiously biting the inside of my cheek.

The kid walked us up to the doors as we held him at gun- and arrow-point. There were random bits of grass growing through the concrete of the courtyard and even bits of blackened wood piled here and there. We stood and waited for a moment before the big red doors of the garage opened up.

A single man stepped out, but we could see the dark figures of many more hiding within the garage. "You okay, little man?" the guy asked the kid.

"They threatened to cut off my feet," the kid said, his voice small.

I rolled my eyes.

"Cops do that?" the guy, Guillermo I was guessing, looked at Rick.

"Not him," the kid announced, turning to me. "This redneck puto. He cut off this dude's hand, man, he showed it to me."

"Shut up!" I growled at him.

"Hey!" said another man, starting to come out of the garage, his pistol pointed at me. "That's that vato right there. The one that shot me in the ass with an arrow."

Guillermo laid a hand on his gun arm, lowering it and saying, "Chill, ese, chill." He glanced around at us. "This true? He wants Miguellito's feet? That's pretty sick, man."

Rick shook his head. "We were hoping more for a calm discussion."

"That hillbilly shot Filipe's little cousin, beats on him, threatens to cut off his feet. Filipe gets an arrow in the ass. And you want a calm discussion? You fascinate me," he shook his head.

"Mistakes were made," Rick said. "On both sides."

"Whose that dude to you anyway?" Guillermo asked, nodding in my direction. "You don't look related."

"He's one of our group, more or less," Rick said, nodding to the men in the garage. "I'm sure you have a few like him."

"You got my brother in there?" I asked, inching forward.

Guillermo dusted his hands off on his pants and smirked. "Sorry, fresh outta white boys. But I gotta girl. Interested?"

I tensed up at the mention of Kaiya.

"You have one of ours, we have one of yours," Rick said, shoving Miguel with the tip of the barrel of his gun. "Sounds like an even trade."

"Don't sound even to me," Guillermo said.

I clenched my teeth, and I could tell Glenn was fighting the urge to tear through that garage till he found Kaiya.

Miguel raised his hands in a "what the fuck" gesture. "G, come on, man!" he pleaded, trying to keep a smile up.

"My people got attacked," Guillermo continued. "Where's the compensation for their pain and suffering? More to the point, where's my bag of guns?"

"Guns?" Rick asked.

"The bag Miguel saw in the street. The bag Filipe and Jorge were going back to get. That bag of guns."

"You're mistaken," Rick said, shaking his head.

"I don't think so."

"About it being yours. Its my bag of guns," Rick pointed to himself with a thumb.

"The bag was in the street. Anybody could come around and say it was theirs. I'm supposed to take your word? What's to stop my people from unloading on you right here and now? And I take what's mine?"

The sound of many hammers being pulled back echoed around the dark inside the garage.

I took a step back and kept my crossbow up.

"You could do that," Rick said.

I glared at him. Was he trying to get us and possibly Kaiya killed?

He looked up to the roof to our left where T-dog was positioned. Guillermo followed his gaze. "Or not."

He saw the gun T-dog had aimed at him. He just nodded and yelled, "Oye!"

We looked up to the top of the building and saw two men bring a young woman with a sack over her head to the edge of the roof. They pulled the sack off. It was Kaiya. She had sweat dripping down her forehead and saturating the front of her hair. Her long hair was tangled and hung down in sweaty waves. There was a piece of silver duct tape over her mouth and her hands appeared to be bound. There was fear in her eyes as she looked down at us. At the long drop she had to make if they chose to push her even the tiniest bit.

"Kaiya!" I yelled, dropping my crossbow.

"No!" Glenn growled at Guillermo.

They tried to hold her in place, but she seemed to be squirming and shaking a little bit. She was making small whimpering noises, but I could hear them from here.

"Let her go!" I yelled.

Rick gazed up, nostrils flaring with rage. Then he looked back down at the ground, clenching his jaw as Guillermo began to speak again.

"I see two options. You come back with Miguel and my bag of guns, everybody walks. Or you come back locked and loaded and we'll see which side spills more blood." Guillermo spared T-dog one last glance before turning around and walking back inside the garage, his homeboys following him.

I pulled Miguel with me and growled, "God damnit!"

Glenn grabbed his head and said, "What are we gonna do? We cant just leave her there!"

Rick slammed the bag of guns down on the table, unzipping it the rest of the way.

"How can we be sure they're going to give her back?" T-dog asked as Rick loaded another magazine into a gun.

"You callin' G a liar?" Miguel asked from his seat on the floor.

"Are ya part of this?" I asked, moving toward him and making him flinch. I smacked him in the side of his head. "Ya wanna hold onto yer teeth?"

"The question is do you trust that man's word?" Glenn asked.

"We have to. I wont just leave her out there. Glenn, you could've left me out there in those streets. I was just some idiot in a tank to you. But you didn't leave me. And we're not leaving her."

Glenn nodded, looking a little relieved. I was glad, too. But even if Rick and T-dog had given up on her, I would've stayed and tried to get her back and I know Glenn would've helped me.

"So yer givin' him the guns?" I asked.

"I didn't say that," Rick shook his head, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "There's nothing keeping you two here," he gestured to me and T-dog. "You should get out of here."

I shook my head. T-dog said, "And tell your family what?"

He looked to me and read in my eyes that I was staying to get her back. I nodded and T-dog, Glenn, and I moved forward to grab a gun.

Miguel stood up. "Oh, come on, this is nuts!"

I shoved him in the chest and pointed back to where he had been sitting before.

He sat back down with an indignant huff. Damn teenagers. "Just do like G says," he whined.

We loaded the guns and headed out. We tore a piece of white fabric into a strip and planned on using it to keep Miguel quiet when we got to the garage. We led him up there quietly, but he was blabbering the whole time.

We were almost on the street the garage was on when Miguel leaned over to me and whispered, "So what was that girl's name? Kaiya?"

I narrowed my eyes at him and nodded.

He smiled a little. "How old is she?"

I looked him up and down. Why did he wanna know? "16. 'Bout the same age as you I reckon."

His smile widened. "She's pretty hot."

I turned to glare sharply at him.

His eyes widened. "What are you like her boyfriend or something?"

I blushed a little.

Then he looked closer at me. "No, you're way too old for that."

I almost sighed. _Trust me, kid, I know._

"So, what? Her dad?" He pondered that for a moment, then said, "Nah, you two don't look alike enough for that. Her uncle, then?"

Just so he would shut up about her, I said, "Somethin' like that."

When we got to the garage, I tied his hands up extra tight just for talking about Kaiya. Glenn pulled the cloth over his mouth and we moved him up to the garage doors, still holding him at gunpoint.

They opened the doors and I shoved him inside, looking warily around at the men there. We made our way through the garage until we came to Guillermo.

He looked down at the shotgun in Rick's hands and said, "I see my guns. But they're not all in the bag."

"They're not yours," Rick said. "I thought I mentioned that."

A man beside Guillermo stepped forward. "Lets just shoot these fools right now. Unload on their asses, ese."

Guillermo looked around at us. "I don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation."

Rick dropped the gun. "No I'm pretty clear." He took out a switchblade and cut the bindings on Miguel's wrists, shoving him forward. "There's your man. I want Kaiya."

Even though I knew Rick didn't mean it like that, I had to grit my teeth at the sound of those words leaving his mouth.

Guillermo grimaced. "I'm gonna chop up your girl."

My grip on my gun tightened, the skin over my knuckles becoming white. Once again, I had to force myself not to yell that she wasn't _his _anything. But then I remember that she wasn't _my_ anything either and frowned.

"I'm gonna feed her to my dogs. Three of the evilest, nastiest, man-eating bitches you ever saw. I picked them up from Satan at a yard sale. I told you how it had to be. Are you willfully deaf?" He stepped closer to Rick.

Glenn and T-dog tensed beside me.

"My hearing's fine. You said come locked and loaded," he, along with the rest of us, cocked his gun. "Okay then. We're here." He stuck his gun right in Guillermo's face.

Just when I thought shit was about to go down, I heard an old woman's voice call out, "Filipe!"

Everyone turned to watch a little old lady in a light blue night gown walk in.

"Abuela!" Filipe said, keeping his gun pointed at me. "Get back with the others."

"Git that ol' lady outta the line of fire!" I snarled.

"Abuela," Guillermo said, half turning to her. "Listen to your mijo, okay? This is not the place for you right now."

She started explaining something to Filipe, but all I could really understand was that someone was having trouble breathing.

"Filipe, go take care of it, okay? Take your grandmother with you." Guillermo yelled.

Filipe started to take the lady away, but she caught sight of us. "Who are those men?" she asked, pointing to us. She seemed to zero in on Rick. "Don't you take him," she said to Rick. She probably noticed the uniform and thought he was going to lock Filipe up. That must mean she didn't know what a shithole the world had become. "Filipe's a good boy. He has his trouble, but he will pull himself together. We need him here."

Rick looked just as confused as I felt. "Ma'am, I'm not here to arrest your grandson."

"What do you want him for?" she asked softly.

Rick leaned forward, thinking hard. "He's… helping us find a missing person. Girl named Kaiya."

"The young girl?" she asked.

When Rick nodded, she started taking us through the garage, and surprisingly enough, the thugs let us pass. She led us through a garden and into a hall that looked like it was part of a nursing home. She went on and on about how much of an angel Kaiya was and how sweet and helpful she was. I cant believe I caught myself smiling once at the old woman's description of Kaiya.

In every room, there were old people laying in beds and hooked up to IV's. We came into a cafeteria-type room where a bunch of people were crowded around an old man in a wheelchair.

Kaiya was one of them. She had her arms crossed and was watching the old man worriedly.

Filipe walked forward and bent down, instructing the man to breathe in. He held an inhaler up to his mouth and pressed down on the top.

Rick glanced sharply at Kaiya. "What the hell is this?"

She glanced up as if just noticing us. "Asthma attack. He couldn't get his breath all of a sudden."

"We thought you were getting eaten by dogs!" T-dog exclaimed as Glenn raced forward to hug her tightly.

She squeezed him, closing her eyes and smiling. Then she glanced behind her, in the direction of a doggie bed with three little Chihuahuas yipping annoyingly. "Not exactly," she laughed.

I was more relieved than I would like to admit to see Kaiya again. I just watched her as Rick went to talk to Guillermo. She was no longer pale, sweaty, and frightened like she had been the last time I saw her, standing atop that roof. Her hair was untangled and hung down to its full length. She noticed me staring and looked up, smiling.

I gave her a small half-smile.

Then she noticed another person staring at her. She lifted her attention to Miguel.

He grinned sheepishly and ducked his head, hiding a blush and biting his lip. He looked back up at her from under a fringe of thick lashes.

She smirked, focusing on the floor.

I gritted my teeth and slung the strap of my gun around my shoulders, moving forward. I didn't care if Glenn, T-dog, and Rick saw me, I just wanted that little punk to get the picture; she's off limits. I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her, using one hand to hold the back of her head to my chest. I had been so worried about her it had scared me. But she was here now and she was alive.

"Missed ya, kid," I whispered in her ear.

She seemed a bit startled, but she didn't pause when she hugged me back.

It seemed like the room got a little quieter, but I didn't care. I pulled away, careful not to look at anyone.

But I did chance sneaking a glance up at Miguel. He was scowling and looking off some other direction.

I smirked, a smug feeling rising in my stomach. Take that Miguel.

* * *

><p><strong>Whoo... Seven pages... Hope you guys liked it! :D <strong>


	24. Jealousy

KAIYA'S POV:

Daryl's hug had surprised me (as well as everyone else) to say the least. He had practically ignored me since that kiss back at camp.

After Rick was done talking to Guillermo, he started to walk to another room. Daryl and T-dog followed, but I stayed in the cafeteria. Glenn did, too, since the last time he left me alone, he almost lost me.

I noticed the boy our group had taken. Miguel. He smiled and made his way over to where I was standing.

Glenn was being verbally flooded by old people intrigued by the idea of an Asian boy.

I laughed and shook my head.

"Hey, you're Kaiya, right?" Miguel asked.

I turned to him and nodded, smiling. I held out my hand for him to shake. "Yeah, and you're Miguel, right?"

He nodded and shook my hand. "We're the hostages," he joked, grinning.

I kept my smile up. "We should start a club or something."

This simple statement made us both start laughing.

Upon hearing our laughter, Daryl poked his head out of the door they had disappeared behind. He caught sight of us laughing together and scowled.

I felt a little self-satisfied. Was he jealous?

He, T-dog, and Rick exited the room, a half-empty bag of guns slung around Rick's shoulder. They waved to Glenn and I. It was time to leave.

Miguel noticed and said, "How about I walk you out?"

I thought about how jealous that could make Daryl (if he was really jealous and not just annoyed with Miguel) and nodded.

He held his arm out and I liked my arm with his.

Daryl rolled his eyes, giving an agitated grunt and moving forward. Glenn watched us sternly, but without the harshness of Daryl's glare. Rick nudged T-dog and tilted his head to gesture to us. He turned and noticed us and smiled evilly along with Rick.

I swear, they're like old women gossiping.

"He always like that?" Miguel asked, eyeing Daryl thoughtfully.

He was further ahead than we were, out of ear shot.

"Cranky and tense? Yeah," I answered, nodding.

"I heard that," Daryl droned. Guess he wasn't as "out of ear shot" as I thought.

I made a guilty face which made Miguel snort.

We reached the door of the garage and the four men ahead of us turned to look at us, T-dog and Rick with smiles, Glenn looked like he was just waiting to see what was going to happen, and Daryl looked expectant. He was glaring at Miguel, making it clear with his eyes that he was to turn around and leave right now.

But he wasn't looking at them.

I glanced around at them curiously, but Miguel turned me to face him. "Don't die out there, huh?" he said, smirking. "It'd be a shame for someone as cute as you to die."

I felt my face heat up and I really wanted to tell the others to go away. But I guess this was as close to a soap opera as they were going to get unless cable companies decided to just up and start working again. "I'll try," I grinned.

All of a sudden, he got real shy. "You know, I might never see you again," he stuffed his hands in his pockets, gazing down at the ground.

"Yeah?" I said, curiosity making my words lilt into question form.

Before I knew what was happening, Miguel had leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine. His lips were pretty soft, and warm, too. I was too shocked to really react. My eyes stayed open and I watched his face as he kissed me. He was pretty hot. I supposed I normally would've loved to be kissing Miguel. But after meeting Daryl, I found that Miguel lacked a certain rugged toughness. He also lacked blue eyes, a drawl, and a crossbow. After kissing Daryl, I was sure no one's kiss would ever be enough.

Finally Miguel pulled away, his face red. "Wow," he breathed, smiling.

"Yeah," I said awkwardly, my voice cracking. "Wow."

He nodded and then said, "See you later princesa." Before I could object, he leaned back in and pecked me on the cheek. Then he turned and walked away back the way we had come.

I turned to see that Rick and T-dog had their backs to us, but they were peeking out of the corner of their eyes and I could still see the smiles on their faces. Glenn looked like he was going to be sick. It must've been pretty gross to watch someone as close to him as I was get kissed. I would probably feel the same way if I saw someone kissing him. I had to hold in a gag just at the thought.

Daryl looked pissed. His face was red and his eyes were averted. His jaw was clenched and his breaths were deep. I had expected to feel good about him being jealous. But that unplanned kiss had really pushed it and I knew it. So instead, my stomach kind of hurt.

I grabbed at my aching stomach and said, "C'mon lets get back to camp, I'm starving." I walked past the four of them, taking my rifle back from Glenn.

The guys followed me, each watching me with different expressions. Glenn with disapproval, T-dog with smugness, Rick with pleasure, and Daryl with fury.

I sighed and kept going. It seemed I led the way back to where we had parked the van, but the entire time, Daryl was complaining about how we had given away the guns. He sounded truly displeased with that fact, but I suspected that he was redirecting his anger toward Miguel and using it to fuel this tirade.

When we came to the spot where we had parked the van, I looked up to see that the van wasn't there. Everyone else must've been paying an awful lot of attention to the raging hillbilly behind me, because when I stopped and said, "Oh shit!" they all looked up, surprised that the van wasn't where we had left it.

"Who would've taken it?" Glenn asked, looking around as though the van had merely gotten uncomfortable in its position and shifted to sit somewhere else, perhaps in the shade of a tree.

"Merle," Rick said, his voice low and angered.

Daryl looked down at the ground with a frown. "He's gonna be takin' some vengeance back to camp."

We all nodded, looking around like we thought the van might turn up if we looked hard enough. Unfortunately, it didn't.

"C'mon, we gotta get back before dark," Rick said, starting to jog up the road with the rest of us trailing behind.

I was grateful for those tennis courses my mom had made me take last semester; the unyielding laps we were forced to run had built up my cardio. T-dog, however, didn't look like he was having much fun with our little impromptu exercise.

"I really wish I had a donut," I grumbled as we jogged up the dirt road. T-dog nodded, an empathetic expression crossing his face.

Rick chuckled at us.

By the time we were on the dusty road beside the camp, everybody but Glenn and I were leaning over and clutching at their sides. Night had fallen only minutes ago, but we weren't all too worried about hurrying now, being so close to camp already.

"C'mon, you guys, is that all your old men lungs can stand?" I taunted, running backwards to watch them.

Glenn smirked and started to add something but before he could, a scream pierced the night air, raising goosebumps on my forearms. I knew that scream. It was Amy. Whatever she would be screaming like that for could only be horrible. Her scream was soon accompanied by others.

Rick, T-dog, Daryl, Glenn and I exchanged brief terrified glances before bursting through the thick brush separating us from camp. There were walkers everywhere, flooding the camp and chomping on any of the living that were too slow to outrun them. Without hesitation, our Atlanta group cocked our weapons and ran forward, shooting everything that moaned and displayed cannibalistic tendencies.

I shot countless walkers, never letting them get close to me. But somehow one slipped through my peripheral and managed to sneak up on me from behind.

I felt cold, bloody hands grip my shoulder and on instinct, I kicked out behind me and screamed. Unfortunately, my kick did absolutely nothing but sail right past its kneecap and my scream landed me another walker trying to eat me. I was just barely able to move around enough to keep the walker from getting a good enough hold on me with its teeth.

Then another looked up, intrigued by my yell. She came stumbling toward me and I was unable to shoot her because of the walker still trying to nom on my shoulder.

"Shit!" I yelled as the second walker shambled forward, beginning to open her mouth. But before she could reach me, her head tilted sharply to the side and blood spewed out of her temple. She fell over with a thud.

Daryl ran up and used the butt of his gun to smack the walker in the face that still had a hold on me. The walker's head was right by mine, so it kind of made me jump.

"Thanks," I gasped, giving him a nod.

He kept his mouth closed and just looked up and down me then nodded, running off to help with the last few walkers.

I took a deep breath now that the panic was over. In the violent haze, I had made my way closer to the RV. There was blood splattered on every inch of me. I would have to burn my clothes later. I wiped my face with the back of my hand, smearing some of the blood across my cheek.

Then I looked down. Andrea was kneeling down on the ground, bent over something my brain was numb to seeing. All my heart-broken mind would allow me to register was the blurry shape of a body with white-blond hair spilling out onto the ground.

Tears mixed with the blood on my face and I sobbed, stumbling backwards and falling to my butt. I kept my legs where they were, propped up against the ground, and brought my hands to my face, covering my eyes and shaking my head.

This was a nightmare. It _had _to be. And when I stopped shaking my head and woke up, I would be back home, Donkey barking and my parents waiting for me at the breakfast table. Everyone would still be alive. Every walker that ever turned, Amy, and even Merle (if he was dead).

"No…" I whispered, my hands still over my eyes.

"Hey," someone whispered right next to me.

I jerked my hands away from my eyes, leaving them just inches from my face. I stared at them as if for the first time and tilted my head to one side, gazing at the blood stains on my palms. My hands used to be soft and clean, thin hands used for dancing. But now, they were a fighter's hands. Scarred, blood-stained, and gun slinging.

I shook my head some more, squinting through my tears.

Someone put a hand on my shoulder. I supposed it was supposed to be a comforting gesture, but I was too shaken up to construe it as anything but frightening.

I whimpered and used my feet to scramble backwards, still on my butt. Dirt and woodchips dug into my palms as I moved back.

After a moment of rubbing at my eyes, I was able to clear the tears enough to make out Daryl, a hurt expression clear in his features.

I felt more tears coming and shot up so that I was sitting on my knees and threw my arms around his neck, crying on him like he had done on me only a few hours earlier. No one took notice of us; everyone else was too consumed with grieving their losses.

He brought his arms up to hold my back as I cried. He, too was on his knees and it was quickly becoming as uncomfortable position for us to be sitting in. He wrapped his arms tighter around me, lifting me slightly as he moved so that he was sitting cross-legged and I was laying across his lap.

I leaned my head on his shoulder and gripped the fabric over his chest. He hesitantly moved the hair back from my face and tried to wipe away a few of the tears on my face. Unfortunately that did nothing but smear the blood even more.

I looked up, tears still pooled and glistening on the edge of my bottom eye lid. He looked right back down into my eyes, concern showing itself. I squeezed my eyes shut tight and curled up closer to him, another sob taking over my body.

* * *

><p><strong>I just about cried having to write Amy's death... *sniff* Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it. Review! :) <strong>


	25. Insight to Pain

DARYL'S POV:

We sat in the same place, in the same position for the whole night.

After those first few very loud sobs, her tears became silent, though still present. They leaked from her eyes incessantly, never faltering, the amount constant. She stayed quiet, and normally, I would've loved to have had her shut up. But not this way. This wasn't a nice silence, the kind where she finally ran out of things to say. This was a depressed silence, a silence that threatened to steal my sanity if I didn't hear her say something soon.

She stayed sitting the same way, curled up in my lap with her head rested on my shoulder. One of her hands was pinned between her side and my stomach and the other played with a string poking out of one of the buttons on my shirt.

It wasn't her silence, her stillness, or even Amy's death that frightened me most. It was the look in her eyes when I finally got the nerve to grab her hand and keep her from twirling that string. I grabbed her hand, squeezing gently.

Her eyes shot up to mine and I half expected to see that twinkle she got when she laughed, or the spark of determination when someone told her "no". Instead, it was replaced by a dark, empty apathy. But no, it wasn't even apathy.

If I looked closer, I could see that her pain was only very thinly veiled by an emotionless glaze. Deeper inside, I could see pain. Everyone she knew was getting taken away from her. Her parents, school friends, I had shot Donkey, and now Amy. All she had left in the world was Glenn, and even he was at risk nowadays.

There was also desperation. She didn't want to be here anymore.

She was asking a thousand questions with her eyes. But the prominent one, was "How am I still alive after all I've been through?"

Doubt. It was a crippling emotion, one I knew well. But she was a strong girl. If anyone could pull through this, it was her. But that black hopelessness made my chest hurt.

We had sat the same way all night long, but staring into her eyes seemed to take up a lifetime. Yet it still wasn't enough. I wanted to be able to make that sorrow vanish. I wanted it gone. She wasn't Kaiya with it hanging heavy in the air around her.

I frowned down at her and did something I never thought I would do. I leaned down and kissed her forehead, keeping my lips pressed against her head for longer than was absolutely necessary.

I hoped she knew that it would be okay. I wanted her to understand that from my comforting gesture. Not that I was some old pervert who liked to go around kissing teenagers. But that I honestly cared about her. It scared me to think that I cared about someone other than Merle or myself, but as I thought it, I knew it was true. I would just have to deal with it. I pulled away and looked back down to her.

The tears were falling quicker now, but still she made no sound. I left one hand up by her cheek. She grabbed onto it, holding it tighter to her face as she squeezed her eyes shut. Then I saw the big, dark circles under her eyes. I frowned, but didn't bother telling her to get some sleep; none of us would be able to after tonight.

The invasion of what we thought was a safe area meant only the worst could happen from here. Walkers were moving out of the city, expanding their hunting grounds. Humans were quickly becoming a rarity and they were adapting to that fact without being consciously aware of it. They weren't consciously aware of anything, let alone their instincts.

I realized how unsuitable most of our survivors were for this new world. Kaiya especially. Sure she could handle a weapon and take care of herself. That much was obvious from how far she's made it. But she didn't belong in this world anymore. I'm not saying she belonged in the crowds of walkers wandering the streets of Atlanta either, though. Beauty wasn't something someone expected to find in apocalyptic lands, and therefore seemed out of place. Kaiya was truly beautiful, though I'd never admit that to anyone. To see her anywhere near walkers was a horrifically surreal atrocity.

That blood and those tears didn't belong there. I was sure that tears were a natural thing that should look normal, but those tears were tears for someone lost to the worst imaginable death. And those tears were the only thing in this world that made me sad at this point. That blood, it wasn't supposed to be there. Blood like that didn't belong on a lady's face.

Blood like that, the blood of monsters, didn't belong anywhere, didn't have a place in the world we once knew. Now they were the dominant element of a geographically-the-same world.

I looked up from Kaiya's crying face and gazed out to the horizon. The sun was just beginning to come up, and though we could still hear the sounds of weeping people, the sounds of productive working could also be made out over the deafening silence of grieving.

I tightened my hold on Kaiya and stood, carrying her over to a folding lawn chair. I set her in it and she immediately huddled up in the seat, pulling her legs close to her body.

I frowned once more over my shoulder at her, but turned to go help with the disposal of the bodies.

KAIYA'S POV:

Staying still all night had locked up some of the joints in my body, but at the moment, my mind was occupied with thoughts of my lost friend.

I curled my legs up my chest and wrapped my arms around them as Daryl sat me in one of the chairs that had stayed upright when the walkers came and the panic took over. I could feel him watching me, but eventually the feeling of being watched faded away and I was left alone to my thoughts.

The sun was just coming up, shedding a little light on the gore around us. Like we needed to see any clearer than the small amount we could see last night. That had been enough. Though the sun was coming up, I still felt cold. I wished Daryl was back with me; he had been warm.

But when I cast a look over my shoulder at him, my field of view also took in Amy's body, Andrea's bent over it. I clenched my teeth and squeezed my eyes shut, unsure if I would be able to cry anymore after tonight. It seemed every tear in my body had been used to grieve Amy's death.

I couldn't bring myself to look closer than I had already, just vaguely glimpses in which only her outline or the color of her hair were visible. I didn't plan on getting a better look, either. That would only bring nightmares worthy of Glenn's record.

I sighed and left my eyes shut, turning back around to rest my head against my knees. I wasn't sure who all had been lost in the battle, but while I had been curled up against Daryl, I had caught fleeting glimpses of Rick, Lori, Carl, Sophia, and Carol. Glenn had come by every so often to ask Daryl how I was doing, so I knew he had stayed with me. Alive.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and my head jerked up. I looked beside me to see Glenn standing there, baseball cap in one hand and tears staining his cheeks. Amy had been his friend, too.

I stood up and rounded the arm of the chair so I could hug him.

I looked over his shoulder at the damage, carefully avoiding the lump Andrea was crouched over. Walkers' bodies were laying everywhere, bloody and bent at awkward angles. And then, there were the random camper bodies, bitten into and though they were covered in blood, they were distinctly different than the walkers surrounding them.

I shut my eyes again and pulled out of Glenn's arms. He had been crying on my shoulder. Not sobbing, just crying. A steady, quiet, even flow of tears. He nodded to me and turned to go help out with the bodies.

I tried not to pay attention to anything else, focusing my glares on the ground.

I heard a growl from the direction of Amy's body and jumped. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see her lifting herself up to Andrea. I knew better than to know she was just waking up and would be all good and fine. Every camper still alive tensed, weapons ready. I sat back down in the chair, pulling my legs up.

I knew what sound would soon follow those guttural snarls. I threaded my fingers through my hair, tears springing surprisingly to my eyes. I gripped my hair, holding on tight no matter how badly it stung. The tears kept running and my head kept stinging, but I didn't care anymore.

I wished more than anything that I could've been the one in Amy's place. Her death had devastated people. Mine would have done that to only Glenn. Maybe Daryl if he could be bothered to show any emotion. And even then, he would only be a little bitter about it.

I pulled and pulled at my hair, going insane with anticipation. Then the gun shot rang out through the air and the growls stopped. After that, everything was near-silent.

I say "near" because I was still crying, and this time, the tears made noise.

DARYL'S POV:

I drove a pickaxe through another walker's brain, wiping the sweat off my face afterwards and leaving Glenn and T-dog to carry it over to the dead people pile.

I noticed Andrea pointing a gun up at Rick. She wouldn't let anyone get near Amy.

I frowned and walked over to the group formed by Dale, Rick, Shane, and Lori. "Ya cant be serious," I muttered. "Y'all cant let that girl hamstring us." I glanced over my shoulder to make sure Kaiya wasn't in hearing distance. "That dead girl is a time bomb."

"What do you suggest?" Rick asked.

I looked over at him. He looked worn out.

Then I took a step forward, making sure he was looking at me. "Take the shot. Clean in the brain. From here. Hell, I can hit a turkey 'tween the eyes from this distance."

"No," Lori said firmly. "For God's sake let her be."

I scowled and turned away, going back to pick-axing zombie brains. I started to help Morales drag one of the lost campers' bodies over to the burn pile, but short round stopped us, preaching some bull about how we were burying the campers. They were all infected, I didn't see how it made a difference. But I hesitantly consented, and drug the body over to the rows of used-to-be-campers.

"Ya reap what ya sow," I muttered as we laid the body down on the ground.

"Shut up, man!" Morales yelled. I stomped away.

"Y'all left my brother for dead! Y'all had this comin'!" I was glad Kaiya didn't seem to be paying attention to anything but Amy's dead body. That comment would've only served to upset her more. Like she needed that.

Jacqui yelled something about Jim getting bit by a walker.

"Show it to us!" I called, circling around Jim with the pickaxe slung over my shoulder.

He kept backing up, trying to defend himself, but T-dog came up behind him and held his arms as I lifted his shirt. There, just below his ribcage, was a crescent shaped indentation, leaking blood.

I let go of him, as did T-dog and he started backing up, muttering, "I'm okay," over and over. Everyone looked around, unsure what to do or think.

We sent Jim to go sit on a bucket just behind the RV. The rest of us, Kaiya and Andrea not included, formed a circle, debating what to do about Jim.

"I say we put a pickaxe in his head," I mumbled. "And the dead girl's and be done with it."

"That what you'd want? If it were you?" Shane asked, glaring at me.

"Yeah, and I'd thank ya while ya did it," I said, glaring right back at him.

"I hate to say it, I never thought I would, but maybe Daryl's right," Dale said. Finally someone with some sense.

"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog," Rick spit, aiming his accusing glares at the dust beneath our feet. Dale started to interrupt, defending himself and me by default. "He's a sick, sick man." Debatable. "We start going down that road, where do we draw the line?" Rick continued, imitating drawing a line with his hand.

"The line's pretty clear," I said. "Zero tolerance for walkers. Or them to-be."

"What if we can get him help?" Rick asked, shifting anxiously on his feet. "I heard the CDC was working on a cure."

"I heard that, too. Heard a lot of things before the world went to hell," Shane countered. It seemed he just liked competing with Rick.

"If the CDC is still up and running-"

"That is a stretch right there," Shane shook his head and looked around.

"Why?" Rick asked, hands on his hips. "If there's any government left, any structure at all, they'd protect the CDC at all costs. Wouldn't they? I think its our best shot."

I looked around at everyone. No one really seemed to disagree on the location of our next "Safe area" as long as this time, it really was safe. And even I didn't care as long as we got away from here.

"Protection," Rick said, listing off what we could have if the CDC was still operational.

"Rick, you want those things, I do, too," Shane started. "Now if they exist, they're at the military base at Fort Benning."

"That's a hundred miles in the opposite direction," Lori said, narrowing her eyes skeptically at Shane.

"That is right, but it is away from the hot zone. Now listen, if that place is operational, it will be heavily armed. We'd be safe there."

Rick began making a valid argument against Shane about the military getting overrun, but I wasn't paying attention anymore; I was looking contemptuously over my shoulder at where Jim sat cowering.

I gripped the pickaxe tighter in my hand and started backing up. "Y'all go look for aspirin, do what ya need to do. But somebody needs to have some balls and take care of this damn problem!" I yelled, bringing my axe up.

Jim shrunk back, but impact never came. I stopped the swing when I heard Rick cock his gun right next to my head.

"We do not kill the living," Rick said firmly as Shane slipped in between me and Jim.

I turned slowly to look at him and then lowered the axe. "That's funny," I said in a low voice. "Comin' from a man who just put a gun to my head." I started to walk away, surprised Kaiya hadn't heard all this commotion yet and looked up from her huddle.

"We may disagree on some things," Shane said. "Not this. You put it down."

I sneered at him and threw the pickaxe to the ground.

I went back to putting pick axes through the heads of the dead after a while, and I was about to do it to that Ed guy, the one that beat his kid and wife.

But then Carol came up to me. "I'll do it," she said.

I was surprised. She was an awfully small one, I wasn't sure she could hold the thing up.

When I didn't hand it over immediately, she said, "He was my husband."

I looked down at the sorry bastard and nodded, handing it over.

She let a few tears out before she shouldered the pickaxe. Then she started driving it through his head. It seemed like she was using all her anger at him to fuel this. It was even making me a little sick, and I pride myself on my strong stomach.

I walked back toward the other campers to get some water. I was about to walk over to Kaiya and see if she was alright when I heard something. It sounded like a walker.

Kaiya heard it, too, but she didn't look like we did. She already knew.

Amy was leaning up off the ground, blood smeared on her skin and clothes. And she was awake.

I started to walk forward with Rick and Shane, and out of the corner of my eye, I could see Kaiya clutching at her head, like everyone was talking too loud. Then Andrea shot. Amy had been put down.

Almost everything was silent, but Kaiya's weeping.

I wanted to go sit by her, or talk to her. But I knew that would do no good. Nothing could make this better.


	26. Another Goodbye

KAIYA'S POV:

I walked up the hill with Andrea, our arms around each other. Daryl had brought his truck up the hill with all the bodies wrapped up in the bed. Rick and Shane were digging a few more holes to go along with the ones Jim had already dug.

I stood between Daryl and Glenn, off to the side.

When Andrea struggled with getting Amy's body into the hole and refused Dale's help, more tears slid down my dirty cheek. I wondered idly how I could still have any tears after all I had cried lately.

I felt Daryl behind me put a hand on my lower back, rubbing a little with his thumb. I reached a hand behind my back and grabbed his hand, holding it with mine. He tensed up when I held his hand, but I didn't care. As long as he was there. He squeezed lightly after he got used to it and I felt the tiniest bit better.

We walked back down the hill after the funerals sweaty, tired, and depressed. But Daryl didn't let go of my hand on the way back down. Hardly anybody noticed as they were too caught up in the thoughts of the dead.

After a little while, we all gathered back around the fire, ready to get instructions on where we were going to go. I stood beside Daryl, our hands still linked together.

Andrea had finally fallen asleep in one of the chairs.

Shane stepped up and started to speak. "Now, look, there are no guarantees either way. I'll be the first to admit that. I've known this man a long time," Shane said, glancing pointedly at Rick. "I trust his instincts. I think the most important thing here is we need to stay together. So for those of you that agree, we leave first thing in the morning."

Guess that means we're heading to the CDC.

I didn't sleep at all that night, I stayed up, laying in bed with my eyes open. When morning rolled around, I couldn't have been more thankful.

Everyone started loading their cars up. Glenn and I did the same with my truck and everything we owned.

Daryl came up to me while I was tossing my bags in the back. "Glenn, ya might wanna drive," he said, looking over at Glenn who was throwing the tent in the bed.

"Why?" he asked, looking over at me.

"She hasn't slept in almost two days," Daryl replied, not taking his eyes off mine.

"How'd you know that?" I asked, watching as he smirked.

"Those circles," he pointed to my eyes. "Matter fact, how 'bout ya ride with me. I need to talk to ya." He said the last part in a whisper.

I wasn't sure what it was that he needed to talk to me about, but I nodded.

Then we gathered around Rick and Shane, waiting for instructions. "Everybody listen up. Those of you with CB's, we're gonna be on channel 40," Shane said, gripping his gun in both hands. "Let's keep the chatter down, okay? You have a problem, cant get your CB to get a signal, anything, you're gonna hit your horn one time. That'll stop the caravan. Any questions?"

Daryl rubbed at his eyes beside me. Guess he hadn't gotten much sleep lately either.

"We're uh-" Morales spoke up. "We're not going."

Everyone looked surprised and to be honest, I was too. There was strength in numbers and in leaving us, they were leaving protection.

"We have family in Birmingham," his wife said, hugging her daughter to her. "We want to be with our people."

"You go on your own and you wont have anyone to watch your back," Shane said.

"We'll take the chance. I've gotta do what's best for my family," Morales said, not backing down.

"You sure?" Rick asked, seeming a little disgruntled.

"We talked about it. We're sure."

"Alright," Rick said, nodding to Shane. They started mumbling amongst each other and then stepped forward to hand Morales a gun and a box of rounds.

Daryl scoffed quietly and turned to the side. Everyone stepped up to say goodbye. I just stayed to the side and nodded with a smile; I didn't really know them. I noticed the young Morales girl give Sophia her doll.

Daryl watched them pass, biting his thumb nail.

Shane said something quietly to Rick that I couldn't hear and then called out, "Lets go!"

I walked over to Daryl's truck, waving to Glenn. I opened the door and hopped in, leaning my head back. Daryl got in and started the truck, following the rest of the caravan.

We turned to the left, in the opposite direction of Morales and his family.

I watched their car driving away out of window. "What'd you have to talk to me about?" I asked without taking my eyes of the scenery.

He took a few minutes to say something before finally sighing and asking, "How ya holdin' up, kid?"

I shrugged. "About as good as everyone else," I frowned. "Maybe not Amy, though."

He chose to ignore that. "Did ya- uh… Jya hear 'bout Jim?" he asked hesitantly.

I nodded. "Glenn told me earlier. I hope he's okay." I could tell my monotonous cadence of speech lately was putting Daryl on edge.

"Stop that," he said, his usual redneck forcefulness only halfheartedly used.

"Stop what?" I asked, turning to look at him.

"Bein' like that. Goin' around with that lost look in yer eyes, like ya aint got nothin' left. Even when ya talk, ya can tell yer tryin' not to let people see how much this whole thing hurts ya. Ya can pull that crap with everyone else, hell maybe ya even got Glenn fooled. But I know ya feel somethin', so stop pretendin' ya don't." Daryl kept his eyes on the road.

I was a little shocked. I hadn't thought Daryl would have been the one to tell me any of this. I hadn't really been planning on a therapy session with one of the gruffest guys I knew.

"Why?" I asked, looking down at my hands in my lap.

"Ya just gotta stop, alright? It aint right."

"What isn't right?" I asked, the first ounce of feeling since Amy's death leaking into my voice.

"Actin' like ya don't care 'bout nothin'. It aint like you. Just do me a favor, huh, kid?"

I scowled, but looked up to meet his gaze. His face relaxed when our eyes locked, and he started grinning. "Smile."

I couldn't help the twitch that started in the corner of my mouth. The smile felt like it didn't belong there, what with everything going on lately, but at the same time, it felt perfectly right.

"Ya look so weird!" he snorted, beginning to laugh.

I stuck my tongue out at him, knowing my face must've looked kind of contorted, with conflicting emotions influencing the muscles in my face.

He continued to laugh, until I slowly joined in, unable to help it. Soon we were both clutching our sides, tears streaming down our faces as our laughter grew. When we were finally able to calm ourselves, I looked over at Daryl with an incredulous expression.

"What?" he asked self-consciously.

"I don't think I've ever heard you laugh. Like a real laugh, not just a chuckle or something." I smiled.

He frowned and turned his head. "Yeah, well, don't go gettin' used to it."

I cocked a brow and leaned my head against the window of my door, yawning. "It was nice," I muttered, closing my eyes and staying still until the rumble of the old truck's engine lulled me to sleep.

DARYL'S POV:

After our outburst of laughter, she stared at me with wide eyes, as if I had just belly danced in a tutu with a swordfish in my hand.

"What?" I asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"I don't think I've ever heard you laugh. Like a real laugh, not just a chuckle or something." She gave me a smile.

I frowned. I don't laugh. "Yeah, well, don't go gettin' used to it," I grumbled, turning my attention back to the road ahead.

She leaned over and rested her head on the window. "It was nice," she said quietly, yawning.

I frowned. I wasn't sure how to respond to that. Luckily I was spared the obligation to give some kind of feedback. Her soft snores filled the air of the cab, oddly peaceful even though we were in the middle of hell.

We were on a deserted street surrounded by trees when the RV started to slow.

I shut the engine and cursed silently. What now?

* * *

><p><strong>Well, school starts tomorrow for me, so my updates may slow down. But I promise I will try! Review :) <strong>


	27. I'm Already There

DARYL'S POV:

She slept through our abandonment of Jim and I wasn't sure whether I should be glad I left her to sleep or if I should feel bad. I mean, she's already had so many people taken away that she didn't get the chance to say goodbye to. She could've said goodbye to one and I let her snooze right through it. But she hadn't slept in quite a while and she really needed it.

I shook my head and kept driving. I decided I wanted to listen to some music and didn't care much what it was, so I hit play on the CD already in the radio. Lonestar? Whatever.

It started out soft, which I was thankful for since Kaiya was still asleep.

Pretty soon, I was humming with it, and even mumble-singing along. "I'm already there. Take a look around. I'm the sunshine in your hair. I'm the shadow on the ground. I'm the whisper in the wind. I'm your imaginary friend. And I know I'm in your prayers. I'm already there!"

I looked over at Kaiya. It seemed almost like she was smiling.

I felt a small grin tugging at the corners of my mouth. Not from amusement like normal. But from actual happiness. I was surprised at myself. I couldn't honestly say that I had ever been one to take joy in others' happiness. But Kaiya was changing that.

She was almost like a… friend? It felt weird to even think that. I was friends with a girl? That just didn't happen. I didn't befriend those of female sex. I slept with them. I didn't get into the friend zone.

But the longer I watched Kaiya, the more I thought about how good it felt. But as that thought progressed, it changed into me thinking about how much better it would feel to have her in my arms, whispering my name, smiling at me. Better than any of the other sluts I used to get with.

With Kaiya, it was about more than just physical attraction. She actually got me to care. I could honestly say I would cry if she were to die.

I wasn't used to this. Caring about people. I had only ever cared about myself and Merle. But the way I cared about Merle was different, brotherly and bred into us. I cared about Kaiya in a way that scared me sometimes.

I found myself more and more worried every time I was away from her. It made me anxious to be so anxious about her wellbeing.

I turned my attention back to the road and the song. "I'm already there. Don't make a sound. I'm the beat in your heart. I'm the moonlight shining down. I'm the whisper in the wind. And I'll be there till the end. Can you feel the love that we share? I'm already there!"

There was a snore and I saw Kaiya jerk awake. "Ninja stamp!" she yelled, pointing out the windshield and sitting up straight. Her eyes were half closed still, but I could tell she was awake now. I just looked at her. She turned her attention to me.

"Ninja stamp?" I asked, beginning to smirk at her.

She rolled her eyes and frowned, smoothing her hair down. "I was dreaming about being back in school."

Half out of curiosity and half because I wasn't sure what else to say, I asked, "What was happening?"

I saw her give a bittersweet smile out of the corner of my eye. It kind of hurt to see. It was the smile of someone remembering something they had loved, but lost.

"I was in class with my friend Donald. He was one of the funniest guys I have ever met."

I smiled over at her when she laughed reminiscently, looking up at the sky out of the windshield.

"He was talking to me about all the walkers," she suddenly got very serious, but at the same time, I could hear the underlying edge in her voice, like she was getting to the funny part. "One jumped out of the teacher's cupboard and jumped for us, but we both jumped out of the way and it fell through a window. He started going off about how we are such ninjas and we should get ninja stamps. Then I asked about Glenn and he said, 'He's Asian, his birth certificate is a ninja stamp!'" she started laughing, her eyes down.

I found myself chuckling with her. "That the end?" I asked, sensing that there was something she wasn't telling me.

She nodded, frowning and staring at her hands. I had an idea of what it was, but knowing made me want to press for more even less.

"There it is," I said as we rounded a corner, the domed building of the CDC coming into sight. "Ya got yer stuff?" I asked looking over at her.

She nodded and slung her backpack onto her shoulders. She had put her rifle and shotgun in the bed of my truck. I knew those would be too big for her to carry both into the CDC.

"Here," I said, leaning over and opening the glove compartment. "Take that." I dropped the black and silver desert eagle 50 caliber pistol into her hands. "Should be loaded. Was Merle's," I mumbled.

She glanced down at it and frowned, gripping it tightly.

Then she leaned over and kissed my cheek, so fast I wasn't sure she really had. But when I looked over at her, eyes wide, the blush on her cheeks was all the proof I needed.

I pulled over behind the rest of the caravan and shut the engine off. I was surprised to see that there were no walkers around. But from here, I could see lots of dead bodies, laying scattered on the ground in a deteriorating mess.

"Stick close to me," I said, not meeting Kaiya's eyes as I looked over at her. She nodded and I got out of the truck, walking around to her side. She nodded at me and shut the door.

"C'mon," I said, jogging up to the others. She stayed right beside me the whole time. I pushed her up in front of me so I could take up the rear, watching our backs for any wandering walkers.

The smell of the place was terrible. Like what a graveyard would smell like if there was only one graveyard in the world and they hadn't invented graves yet…or Febreze.

We scurried along, hunched over and hiding from anything undead that stumbled upon us. The run wasn't very long, but the disappointment we felt when we reached a closed door went on for miles.

I stayed with my back to the rest of the group as Rick began banging on the door, looking for walkers. Sure enough…

"Walkers!" I called, shooting one between the eyes.

Nobody dared to shoot a gun for the fear that it would only attract more walkers. Even though we hadn't shot with a gun yet, more and more of them were pouring out into the wide open lawn of the CDC.

I could barely hear Rick and Shane yelling over the sound of panic in the campers and the moans of the hungry undead.

"Come on, lets go!" Shane yelled.

I reached behind me and grabbed onto Kaiya's hand, beginning to pull her back to the truck when a bright white light spilled out of the opening doors of the CDC, illuminating the carnage around us.

The CDC was open.

* * *

><p><strong>In the beginning there was man... AND HE BROUGHT AN UPDATE! :D Enjoy! Review! Daydream about Daryl Dixon (is it completely pathetic that that task alone takes up most of my time?)! :) <strong>


	28. Blood

KAIYA'S POV:

We tiptoed through the entrance to the CDC, everyone with a gun holding it up, protecting those who didn't. Daryl and I stayed in the back, guarding us from walkers. Rick and Shane were holding their guns up, pointed further into the blackness of the CDC.

"Watch for walkers," Dale alerted in a hushed whisper. What did he think we were doing?

"Got it," I said, keeping my eyes focused on the doors, hands oddly steady.

It had always been like that between me and a gun. When I did almost anything, my hands were shaky and trying to hold them still only worsened that. But when I held a gun in my hands, it was different. I felt a bit more confident with the slick cold metal of a gun rubbing against my palm, the sights perfectly aligned with my target. Guns understood me like no one would ever be able to.

I knew every gun I had ever touched inside and out, history and faults. Every gun but this one and even this one I felt I had a connection to. Because it had been Merle's. It was a bit morbidly bittersweet to think about him now. Where he might be, what he might be doing. But knowing it had been his made me a bit more comfortable with it resting in my hand.

My hands were always perfectly steady when a gun was in them. This was no exception.

A gun was cocked somewhere by one of the walls, the sound echoing around us.

Everyone's attention, even mine and Daryl's was turned to see where this sound had come from.

A man in a gray T-shirt stepped out of the shadows, gun drawn and pointed at us. "What do you want?" he asked, his voice shaky, as though we were walkers. The kind that could be talked out of ripping into you.

I rolled my eyes at him. It was pretty obvious just by looking at us what we wanted. Somewhere to stay, sleep, maybe eat depending on how much food we had left. Everyone in our group, myself included, was tired, dirty, sweaty, sad, and terrified.

Though there were those (once again, myself included) who tried not to show it. To be strong. But I knew that tiredness would be present no matter what. I could feel every minute of lost sleep etched onto my face as though I had suddenly aged 50 years in the last month and a half.

"A chance," Rick said.

A much more inspirational answer than my own. But at the same time, it was also a much more depressing answer. The fact that we would have to request a chance from strangers reminded us all just how much we had been put through recently. Every open wound, every scar, every tear burned into us by those perversions of nature milling about in the streets outside.

"That's an awful lot to be asking for these days," the man said, lowering the gun and stepping forward.

Rick closed his eyes briefly then opened them and looked to his right, aiming his hopeless stare at the ground and away from his family's eyes.

But the man in front saw it. You could tell by the sudden spark of pity in his eyes. But there was also hesitancy. He seemed to be at war with himself. Either risk letting these dirty, possibly dangerous, and highly irritable people into the CDC, or throw them out into the poisoned streets of the city to fend for themselves. "You all submit to a blood test, alright? That's the price of admission," he said, seeming to blurt it out before he could second think himself.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"If you've got stuff out there, get it now. Once those doors close, the wont be opened again," the guy said.

Me and a few others (the ones with weapons) took requests on stuff to bring back in and made a quick sprint to the vehicles to grab them up, closing the glass double doors behind us and throwing cautious glances around the premises.

"Vi, seal the main entrance," the guy said, looking up at the ceiling. We all gave him looks of curiosity, but he said nothing. "I'm Doctor Edmond Jenner."

Rick began introducing us all, each of us giving the Doctor smiles and nods as we entered an elevator. I stood in the back, leaning heavily on Glenn.

"Doctors always go around packin' heat like that?" Daryl asked, nodding to the weapon in Jenner's hand.

He smirked. "There were plenty laying around. I familiarized myself." Then his eyes wandered over to me. "Teenagers always go around packin' heat like that?"

I noticed Daryl flush at the slightly mocking way Jenner imitated his accent.

I grinned. "Only this one."

The elevator made a dinging noise and jerked to a stop. One thing I hate about elevators: the way the brakes make your stomach lurch.

The doors opened and Jenner stepped out, the rest of us following like helpless ducklings. There were bright lights at intervals down the length of the hallway's ceiling.

I looked around. "Are we underground?" I asked.

Jenner looked back and grinned. "Are you claustrophobic?"

I glanced back up at him, cocking a brow. "A little."

He chuckled. "Try not to think about it."

I grimaced and continued on, ignoring quips from some of the women. "She can handle taking down a walker without flinching, but put her in an underground level of a building and she'll start hyperventilating." I didn't catch who said it, but I had my suspicions about that Lori character. Well, its not my fault it was frighteningly similar to a giant coffin! The thought scared me and I tried to focus on breathing steadily instead of the rough, shallow pants I was starting to give off.

The lights stopped and there was a little bit of a downward slope, but nobody slipped and I took that as a good sign.

"Vi, bring up the lights in the big room!" Jenner said, his voice ricocheting off the walls of the big- and empty-sounding room.

More bright lights turned on, revealing a very large room with lots of technological stuff piled on a bunch of desks. There was a big screen up at the front of the room and railings all around the upraised platform where all the computers were.

"Damn," I breathed, looking around.

"Welcome to Zone 5," Jenner said, opening his arms and gesturing around the area.

We followed Jenner up the steps to the computer platform. I leaned against the edge of a desk, facing the big screen. I crossed my arms and my ankles, letting my butt rest against the edge of the desk behind me. Glenn stood over by the rest of the group, but Daryl was closer to me than the others. Unsurprising. He was still kind of far away from me though. Again, unsurprising.

"Where is everybody?" Rick asked, stepping toward the doctor. "The other doctors? The staff?"

Jenner glanced around himself for a minute before saying, "Its just me here."

"What about the person you were speaking with before, Vi?" Lori asked. That voice… Aha! So it was her picking on my quirks!

"Vi, say hello to our guests." Jenner said, looking around at us all before his eyes finally settled on me. "Say welcome."

"Hello, guests. Welcome," said a big voice. She sounded like the automated voice messaging system in my phone.

I was a little let down. And I could tell by the crestfallen expressions on my companions' faces that they were too.

We had gone through hell and back only to be told that there was a lone doctor here. Not even a couple. Just one.

I didn't see the point in getting all teary about it, though. There were other labs in the world, perhaps some had held out. Just because the one in our immediate area was a total (well, almost total) ghost town didn't mean that there wasn't still hope for a cure.

And hell, some things that people had been waiting for scientists to invent had been stumbled upon by complete buffoons. I didn't think there were many of those left in the world, though, so I quickly abandoned my "adopt a buffoon" plan and sighed.

"I'm all that's left," Jenner continued. "I'm sorry."

His simple sentiment seemed to make us more disappointed. It was like a reminder that there was a reason for everyone to be sorry. Even if they hadn't done anything wrong. That's all this world was anymore: painful reminders. Those memories we thought were dead now hopped up and started walking (more or less) around, trying to devour us. The strange parallel I had drawn in my head made my stomach quiver. Memories and reminders of those memories. Both memories of people and of circumstances, could try and eat you alive. And now they really were.

Jenner silently walked out of the room, telling us without having to tell us that we needed to follow him. He led us to another room. He pulled a small table over and yanked some medical supplies out of a bag. Then he motioned for the first person to sit in the chair in front of him.

Almost everyone seemed a bit hesitant to have their blood drawn.

I rolled my eyes and sighed, plunking myself down in the blue plastic chair. "Babies," I muttered under my breath, hoping nobody heard me.

I didn't mind having my blood drawn; when I was little I had to get lots of shots, so I hardly even felt the brief stinging pinch of the needle sliding through the layer of skin and into my arm. In fact, I was a little intrigued by it, watching with a detached fascination as the needle went through me.

Jenner gave me a strange look, as did the rest of the campers, and said, "You sure you should be watching this? Usually patients want to look away."

"I'm good," I said, grinning at the surprised looks on people's faces when my voice didn't even quaver from the sight of the needle.

He pulled it out, a sterilized syringe filled with my thick red blood.

I watched it, oddly entranced by the syrupy goop that had once been in my body. Sometimes I think maybe someone should check me into a mental facility… then I remember that there are dead people everywhere… then I wonder if I really am just insane and I'm just imagining this stuff…

I shook my head and stood, going to stand by Glenn in the line that formed.

He shook his head in wonder at me. "You're so weird," he said, smiling.

"Thank ya Captain Obvious," I heard Daryl mumble from farther up the line.

"You're welcome Lieutenant Sarcasm!" I said, smirking.

He just shook his head. But I think he laughed because his shoulders shook a little bit in that way they did when he found something amusing.

I bit my lip and looked down, trying to hide my smile.

* * *

><p><strong>Benchmarks every day till next Wednesday so i'm not sure how much i'll be able to write, but i WILL try! Review! Hope you liked it! :) <strong>


	29. Prom Queen

KAIYA'S POV:

After the blood tests, Jenner led us to a cafeteria room. There was tons of food and even more alcohol. I was thankful for both.

Sure I'm not the legal drinking age, but that didn't mean I hadn't done it before. I did live in Georgia. My parents hadn't really minded as long as I didn't go crazy and go out when I got completely shitfaced. Now that it was the end of the world, I didn't figure it would matter very much anyhow. The cops didn't even mind. A few people raised an eyebrow at me when I reached for a bottle of Sothern Comfort, but nothing was said.

Everyone was joking around, laughing and sharing stories, when Dale suggested that Carl try some wine.

"When he's in Italy or France, then he can have wine," Lori said protectively. When was he ever going to go there? There were zombies everywhere!

"Come on!" Rick urged her, chewing on his food.

Finally, she relented, pulling her hand off the top of Carl's glass. Dale poured some of the wine into his glass and Carl grabbed it, looking at it strangely. Then he took a sip. His face immediately contorted. "Ew!"

I laughed with everyone else. Poor kid being subjected to the bitter taste of that stuff. I sympathized with him and nodded.

"Maybe you should just stick to your soda pop there, bud," Shane said, smirking under his folded hands.

"Not you Glenn," Daryl said, making all eyes turn to where Glenn and I were sitting. Glenn was glancing at a bottle of wine as if trying to decide whether or not to drink it.

"Huh?" Glenn asked, looking up.

I rolled my eyes and took a gulp from my SoCo bottle.

"Keep drinkin' lil man, I wanna see how red yer face can git!"

I chuckled, nudging Glenn with my elbow. I took one more swallow before giving it to Glenn and making a drinking motion.

He shrugged then put the bottle to his lips. He made a face. "How can you drink that stuff? It burns!"

I laughed. "You'll get used to it." I had a light buzz going, the warmth of the alcohol spreading to my head.

I smiled contentedly and then thought of something. "Shit!" I yelled, leaping forward. I felt a little bad for my word choice around the kids when I noticed Carol and Lori's frowns, but oh well, no changing it now.

"What?" Shane asked, standing up and tensing, like he thought there was a walker in here.

My arms went limp as my realization sunk in. I had never thought it would upset me this much, but now that I knew it would never even be an option, I sunk to the floor, bottle still in hand.

Glenn bent down to me. "Kaiya, what is it?"

I looked up at him. "I'm never gonna get to go to my prom!"

A few people chuckled but soon they realized I was being serious.

"I never got to have a prom. And now I never will." I don't think the uncomfortable silence went unnoticed by anyone. "Unless…" I said, suddenly perking up.

"Unless?" Rick asked as I stood and ran to where we had piled our belongings.

I searched through my bag until I found what I was looking for. At one point in time, this iPhone had been all I would ever need. Now, it was completely useless. Thank God I had charged it the night before my Spanish quiz and turned it off right before school. I still had full battery life.

I held in the little button at the top and pulled the headphones out, stuffing those back in my bag. Then I stood and walked to the others, hiding the phone behind my back. I walked over to Jenner and leaned down to whisper in his ear, the other campers watching curiously.

When I straightened, Jenner nodded and held his hand out discretely. I handed him the phone, without the notice of my drunken friends. Jenner left the room for a minute before coming back to sit in his chair on the edge of the room again.

Music began playing. I Should Have Kissed You by Chris Brown.

In the back of my mind, I wondered whether or not Chris Brown was still alive.

But then people started to dance. Or at least try.

I walked out into the middle of the room, beginning the dance I had put together for my solo dance in our competition.

I used the techno eighth notes to time my movements, moving my arms in co ordinance with the song's beat. I bent down and popped back up, using my hands to do little flourishes as I spun. I used both hands to make fists and then flung them outward, moving my body upward. I put my hands on my body then moved my torso to make it look like I was using my hands to shift my body.

I tried to ignore everyone that stared.

I stuck a thumb under my shirt and flipped my hand out, once with each hand, for the bass notes. Then I did a wave with my body, turning to the side and popping back to the front.

When it came to the chorus, I clapped my hands once with it, making a downwards motion with my hands and moving my legs back and forth then starting to move forward, popping my body each time the drum was hit. Then I moved one hand from my knees up to the ceiling, watching it.

I brought my hands around in an arc, using them to move my body any time it moved. Then I moved them both so it looked like I was measuring something and looked down at them, then in a robot-like fashion, looked back up. I flung my hands outward and brought them back in, spinning around until I was a few steps back.

Then I stopped and bowed, one leg crossed over the other.

"Oh my," Jacqui muttered, the smile audible in her voice. There were cheers and claps and whistles.

I grinned and stood back up.

A new song started playing.

I went to go sit in a chair over by the table. Directly across the table from Daryl. It seemed he was the only one that wasn't dancing.

His eyes came up to meet mine. I stared into his eyes for quite a while until the chorus of the new song finally got through to me.

"I see the want to in your eyes!"

I blushed and banged my head down on the table and onto my arms. The movement made me think of Amy and how she was always telling me I was going to give myself a headache if I kept doing that. I frowned and tried to forget about it.

I turned my head so that it was sideways on my crossed arms and I was looking at the rest of the dancers. Rick and Lori were dancing, Carol and T-dog, Jacqui and Shane, Andrea and Carl, and Glenn and Sophia. Dale was talking animatedly with Jenner over in the corner, smiling and nodding, laughing occasionally.

Another song started… Unfortunately I didn't recognize it in time to change it before the kids had to hear Cypress Hill sing "Hits from the bong!"

I heard Daryl spurt out a laugh as I ran to snatch up the iPhone and hit next. It was on shuffle. Of course it landed on another song that I wasn't sure the kids should listen to (especially nowadays): Falling Away From Me by Korn.

I figured it would probably just give them nightmares, so I paused the song and began scrolling through the list. Then I came upon something.

"Perfect," I said, hitting play and running back to the others. "You guys know how to do the cupid shuffle, right?" I asked as the music started.

They nodded, smiles growing.

I was pretty sure my embellished movements were just the alcohol going crazy and not me showing off… but I could've been wrong.

I felt Daryl's eyes on me the whole time. I even started yelling out the words with the others at one point. Toward the end of the song, I walked back over to the table where Daryl was still sitting.

"Dance with me?" I asked, smiling and holding my hand out.

He flicked his eyes over to me and shook his head.

I sighed and pouted, throwing myself down into the chair beside him. I crossed my arms with a huff and sunk low in my seat. I suddenly got a very devious idea. I frowned down at the ground and said, "I bet Miguel would've danced with me." so quiet that only he could hear.

He sighed and stood up. "Evil woman…" he muttered, holding his hand out to me.

I smiled up at him and grabbed his hand, running and leading him over to where everybody else was already slow-dancing to the song. Dare You To Move by Switchfoot. I loved this song.

I faced Daryl, and he looked around kind of awkwardly, like he didn't know what to do with himself. I grabbed his hands and put both on my waist before throwing my arms up on his shoulders. He tugged me closer, wrapping his arms around my waist and starting to dance.

"Thanks, Daryl," I said, leaning my head on his shoulder.

"For what?" he asked, looking down at me and continuing the steps of the dance.

I looked up at him, unaware for the moment of how close our faces were. "Dancing with me. Being there for me. Everything," I was whispering.

He seemed to lean a little closer, but he stopped there.

"I dare you to move," I said in time with the song.

He smirked and closed the distance, both of us forgetting that everyone was around us. I heard all of the chatter stop and some people gasp, but I didn't care. I threaded my fingers through his hair and held his face as close to mine as it could comfortably get. He tasted like peppermint, which had been surprising the first time I kissed him.

He was pulled away suddenly.

"Get away from her!" Glenn shouted, pushing Daryl back. I was surprised that Glenn would do that; he was a meek little guy and not very strong.

"What's yer problem?" Daryl yelled back at him.

"Glenn, what are you doing?" I screamed at him.

"You stay away from her," Glenn said, pointing at Daryl and amazingly not showing any sign of fear. Only anger. Glenn turned to me and grabbed my arm, dragging me from the room.

"Glenn what the hell?" I asked. "I didn't get to go to my real prom and now your going to ruin my improv prom?" I was beyond pissed. But not about the prom thing. That I could deal with.

"Stay away from him, Kaiya!" he said, resuming to pull me to the rooms.

"Why?" I asked, stopping and jerking my arm away from his. "What do you care? Why should I listen to you? You're not my dad. You're not my mom. And you're not my brother." My last statement made him flinch a little.

"I'll do whatever I want. What does it matter if I kiss him? it's the fucking apocalypse, Glenn, the rules have changed." I ignored his hurt looks and stormed off down the hall to the rooms. I hoped he didn't get any satisfaction out of me going where he was taking me anyway, but I didn't think I could go back and face the rest of camp after that.

Just before my hand touched the doorknob, I realized I had forgotten something. I paused and turned around, going back to the cafeteria. I walked straight to the table without looking up at anyone. Especially Daryl. It was awkwardly silent. I was almost 100 percent sure they had heard every word of mine and Glenn's exchange.

"Forgot my booze," I mumbled, grabbing the bottle and sprinting back to my room. I shut the door behind me and sat up on the bed, my back leaned up against the wall. I crossed my ankles and took a long drink of the liquor, blurring my vision considerably.

I heard a knock at my door…

That was the last thing I remembered before I blacked out and then woke up with a terrible hangover, a hickey on my neck, and two guys (Daryl and Glenn) passed out on my floor. Oh God…

* * *

><p><strong>I don't think I'm going to write about what happened last night... I'm just going to hint at a few things. Unless you really want me to write about it? We'll see. Review! :D <strong>


	30. No Way In Hell

KAIYA'S POV:

I groaned, my eyes still closed as I rolled around under the covers. Then my hand touched something hard and cold and… oddly plastic-feeling. I gripped it and pulled, holding it up. When I opened my eyes, I was face-to-face with a plastic fish.

I jumped and tossed it farther down on the bed. The quick movements were too much for my hung-over head. White hot pain lanced straight through my brain from temple to temple.

I sighed and leaned back. I didn't even remember drinking that much… Actually, after blowing up on Glenn and coming back here to sulk, I don't remember much of anything at all.

I threw the covers off of myself and began to stand.

My right foot hit a glass bottle, sending it tumbling on its side. The noise was muffled, but it was loud enough to hurt my pounding skull. I gripped my head and stumbled forward a few more steps.

When I rounded the corner, I saw Glenn with his body twisted at a funny angle. If I walked a little farther, I could see Daryl laying a few feet away, arms folded beneath his head. Daryl had on no shirt and Glenn was in only his boxers.

I held a hand to my mouth and tiptoed around them, going into the bathroom. I shut the door quietly and then turned to face the mirror. I looked like hell.

And there was a fucking hickey on my neck! I tilted my head to the side to get a better view. Who the hell had done THAT?

Then I saw a small speck of the purple-black bruising just at the top of my tank top. I lifted a hand to slowly grab the top of my tank and pull it down enough to see two letters bruising the skin over my left breast. DD

DARYL'S POV:

When I woke up, Kaiya was sitting at the foot of the bed chewing on her nail with a panicky look in her eyes.

"Damn," I muttered softly, making her jump nervously. "I haven't gotten that wasted in a while."

She chuckled, but I could hear the anxious undertone.

Glenn began to stir awake. When he sat up, blinking hard and groaning, Kaiya leaped off of the bed, clutching at her head when the movement affected her tender hangover.

"Anybody want to tell me who gave me this?" she asked, pointing to the side of her neck where a large bruise was forming.

"Is that a hickey?" Glenn asked, squinting his eyes at it.

She nodded, clearly a little annoyed.

I looked around for a minute, still trying to get my bearings. My eye caught something just under the edge of the bed. I leaned forward and grabbed it.

"Maybe ya took some pictures er somethin'," I said, holding the iPhone out to her.

She grabbed it and tapped a few spots on the screen before sliding through some and showing them to us. One was me with a plastic fish in my hands, using it to whack Glenn upside the back of his head. Another showed Glenn gazing suspiciously at the same fish, only now it was in his hands.

I saw another that I must've taken that showed Glenn sucking on Kaiya's neck, both of them kind of stiff and awkward-looking. In that picture Glenn was in only his underwear and Kaiya didn't have a shirt on.

I blushed and groaned. When I looked around on the floor, I saw cards laying here and there and then a pile of clothes that consisted of a shirt apiece from both Kaiya and myself and all of Glenn's clothing besides the boxers he was still wearing. "Strip poker," I mumbled.

They looked down at the floor along with me and groaned. This was too much to take in minutes after waking up with a terrible hangover.

Glenn mumbled something about leaving and pulled on his clothes before exiting the room.

Kaiya was still in her pajamas, sitting up on the foot of the bed with her legs crossed. I still hadn't put a shirt on. She didn't seem to mind that; I noticed her eyes traveling across the planes of my torso as I moved around.

"So I guess we found out who gave ya that," I said, sitting down next to her.

"Daryl," she sighed, turning to look at me.

"What?" I asked, confused when she brought a hand to the very top of her tank top. She began pulling it down. I grabbed her hand to stop her. "Kaiya what th' fuck are ya doin'?"

She shook my hand off and said, "Just look."

I frowned but nodded.

She pulled it down, revealing the top of her left breast. There, in bruise-like lettering, were the initials DD.

"Hot damn," I whispered.

"Yeah," she whispered, frowning. "And there's this." She grabbed the phone again and flipped through some pictures.

In passing, I saw a few like Kaiya Glenn and I laughing with bottles in our hands, one of Kaiya sitting in my lap twisting around to smile at my shirtless self, and one of just me, shirtless and looking down, my blue eyes clouded over and brooding.

Then she came to the picture she had been looking for. It was of her and me. She had her back pressed up against the wall, her shirt off, and I (also shirtless) had both of my hands on either side of her head, leaning down to stare into her eyes.

"And?" I asked, not seeing the significance.

She flicked her thumb across the screen and the picture slid to the left, revealing a different picture. She had her hands tangled in my hair, our faces connected at the mouth. It was a terribly sexy picture, and I was kind of afraid that it might have led to something else. Even drunk I wouldn't have let Glenn stand there and watch this, so he must've been out of the room.

"You don't think we…" she trailed off, biting her lip and looking around, unsure of herself.

I shook my head, clenching my jaw. "No." I would be the first to admit that it was a definite possibility; she was a very attractive woman (I had to remind myself she was a _young _woman) and I had been drunk. But the thought freaked me out. I wasn't some pervert.

She looked back up at me, a little relieved and a little hurt at the same time. "What do you mean?"

I couldn't help the biting anger that snapped out at her, but the possibility of what we might have done had scared me, and that was how I reacted to fear. Hell, that was how I reacted to just about everything.

"Ya think I'd sleep with ya?" I asked, standing and narrowing my eyes at her. "Even if I was drunk?" When she remained silent, just sat with anger in her eyes and her mouth open, as if she was thinking of something to say, I scoffed and grabbed my shirt, stomping away from the room.

Damn girl. We didn't have sex. We couldn't have. I had to get her to see that and if hurting her was the only way to do that, then hell if I don't do it. But, as I pulled on my shirt, I knew I was hurting myself more than I was hurting her.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the wait! I had a stupid essay to write :( but i finally finished it! :D So anyway, i know this is really short, but i will try to get more for you soon. Hope you liked it! Review! :) <strong>


	31. All Of The Lights

KAIYA'S POV:

I sat and stared at the wall in front of me, my eyes narrowed and my mouth still hanging open, as though I was still trying to think of something to say.

His words had hurt me. Sure I hadn't wanted to believe that I had done anything with him (he would've gotten into some trouble for that) but the knowledge that he didn't want me at all, that all those longing looks and kisses meant absolutely nothing to him, that hurt the most.

I didn't realize there were tears beginning to form until one rolled down my face. I slowly lifted a hand and touched it, pulling my hand away and staring at my wet fingertips as though tears were something alien.

What had just happened? A small voice in the back of my head whispered, "You got your heart stomped on by an angry redneck." I wouldn't let him get to me like this.

I shook my head, drying the tears up. He wanted to be a jerk? I would be a right bitch to him, too.

I stood and began to get dressed. I decided to go with some recently washed (Carol is a saint) jeans and a tight-fitting red tank top, hoping to look my best. Or at least as good as you could in the middle of the zombie apocalypse.

I shivered and walked out of the room, heading down to the cafeteria where I could hear people laughing. Walking around reminded me of the alcohol I had consumed last night and made the pounding intensify tenfold. I groaned and walked in the cafeteria where Glenn and Daryl were already sitting. Glenn was already complaining about his hangover. I wondered how much he had drank compared to me.

I walked over to the table, carefully avoiding Daryl's eyes, and sat down, smiling at T-dog when he handed me a plate of eggs. I could feel Daryl glaring at the side of my head, but I chose to ignore him.

Dale spoke up about needing to get answers, and though my hangover disagreed with him, I knew he was right. We had come here for a cure, or at least for a doctor working on one. We needed to know what we could.

Jenner complied and led us to the computer room.

Daryl stopped somewhere near one of the desks, and as I passed him, I bumped his shoulder with my own, not bothering to acknowledge his presence. I kept walking and hoisted myself up onto one of the other desks (one that was clear of anything too space-consuming) and sat cross-legged on it, staring up at the big screen.

"Vi, run surveillance videos for test subject nineteen," Jenner announced loudly.

Up on the screen, what looked like an X-ray of a human brain was shown. I was too busy paying attention to the beautiful dark electric blue lights floating their way along the root-like lines inside the brain. Jenner was explaining what they were, but I wasn't much into medicine and the once-human body, so I just entertained myself with watching the screen, only listening closely when familiar words caught my attention. The image on the screen began to dim, then blacken near the base of the brain.

"What the-?" I whispered.

Then, the lights began coming back on along the roots and in the brain tissue. Only now, they were a menacing red color.

"It restarts the brain," I said, shocked that me, with my sophomore-level-knowledge, figured this out before the adults of our group.

"How?" Rick asked, turning to Jenner.

"Well, not the whole brain. Just the brain stem. The rest of it, the part that makes you you, that part doesn't come back." Jenner went on to explain the brain technicalities.

I sat and watched the screen closely, almost jumping when the jaw of the now-walker snapped open, flopping around. Something came in and went back out near the edge of the screen. Something that looked suspiciously like the sights of a pistol.

Something burned its way straight through the skull, brain, and once again skull of the walker, leaving it completely motionless. There was a tunnel-like formation straight through the head. He had shot the patient.

After a short discussion about what the walker's had really was, Andrea said what every one of us had been thinking. "Its not just here, is it? Its everywhere."

Jenner hesitated before giving her a nod and explaining that he had lost contact with everyone.

I heard Daryl sigh, but didn't turn my attention away from the screen as he said, "I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk. Again."

"Doctor, I know this has been taxing for you, and I hate to ask another question, but," Dale pointed up to the wall.

I finally looked away from the screen to turn and look at the red numbers counting down on the wall.

"That clock. Its counting down. What happens at zero?"

I was suddenly very interested in that clock.

"The basement generators," Jenner started. "They run out of fuel."

Rick's head snapped up to Jenner. "And then?"

Jenner just stood and walked past him, exiting the room.

"Vi, what happens when the power runs out?" Rick asked, jaw line tense.

Vi's large, technological voice said, "When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur."

I didn't know what that meant exactly, but I didn't think it sounded too healthy for us.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry it took so long to update, I've been having some internet problems : But there's chapter 31! :) Hope you liked it **


	32. One Punch

DARYL'S POV:

I walked with the rest of the camp (sans Glenn, T-dog, Rick, and Shane who were searching for fuel in the basement) when someone behind me bumped me. I could tell it had been an accident, but on impulse, I had spun around and begun to yell. "Watch where the fuck yer goin'!"

Kaiya stared back at me, a very pissed off face pulled, only anger showing in her eyes. She crossed her arms and stormed past me to her room.

It kind of hurt to see her so mad at me. The one person that would actually talk to me.

As she stomped past, I heard her mumble, "Dick."

"Stupid bitch," I muttered, beginning to walk away.

I heard her scoff behind me. Her footsteps caught up to me, but I didn't turn around. She tapped on my shoulder.

I sighed and began to turn around, only to be met by a fist. She had swung hard, her clenched hand connecting roughly with my cheekbone. I felt the world tumbling away, but that could've just been my body hurtling down onto the carpet of the hallway. I heard some gasps and my own grunt of pain, but everything else was drowned out by the sound of her snarling, "Stay the fuck away from me, Dixon." She walked away.

I groaned and rolled over.

People were still standing out in the hallway, staring down at me incredulously.

I stood, the scene around me tilting dangerously. When I was finally upright, I looked around at everyone looking at me. "Don't y'all got somethin' else to stare at?" I asked, provoking a few startled jumps. I turned with a sneer and opened the door to my room.

All of my stuff was in here, but I had a feeling we weren't staying here for much longer with things going the way they were. So I began packing, thinking about what had just gone down outside.

I had never in my entire life gone down in just one punch, even when Merle had been the one to throw it. But she clocked me and I hit the floor like a sack of potatoes. God damn it.

"She's got some balls," I mumbled to myself.

I found myself in a scary situation. I sat on the bed and began ticking away the points on my fingers.

"She drops me in one punch, she drinks, she can handle a gun on her own, she punches grown men."

I groaned and leaned back onto the bed.

"Shit!" I rubbed my eyes.

"I fuckin' love that crazy lil' bitch."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry guys, SUUUPER short chapter. But i hope you liked it anyway! :) Remember to review! <strong>


	33. Noises

KAIYA'S POV:

I couldn't believe that jerk. What gave him the right to do this? To make me cry?

I angrily wiped at the tears forming in my eyes and stood from my perch on the edge of the bed, stomping moodily around the room. I could feel the redness around my eyes and went into the bathroom to splash some water on my face and try to cool down.

I figured the only way to do that would be to stop thinking about Daryl; the thought of him only pissed me off more.

Redneck backwoods inbred fucker. I sighed and half smiled at my reflection. Bad mouthing Daryl was actually helping me feel a little better. Who ever said yelling and saying hurtful things didn't help? Liars, that's who.

I went over to my clothes and, because I had nothing better to do, began folding them. The longer I thought about it, the more I thought it was a good idea to stuff the folded clothes into the bag.

We couldn't stay here forever. Eventually we would need something on the outside. Eventually we would need to venture outward. Or (on what I hoped was a very slim chance) eventually we could get overrun. I kind of doubted that it could happen, what with the maximum security prison-type lock system. But if we let our guard down, they would eventually find a way through.

I shoved my junk into the bag, tying my long hair back with a ponytail.

Then the air stopped.

I looked around for a moment, listening intently to the panicking voices of my companions outside. I opened the door to my room and took a single step outside, glancing around at everyone.

Daryl leaned out of his room, a bottle of alcohol in his hand. "What's goin' on? Why's everythin' turnin' off?" he asked, looking up the hall ahead of him.

I rolled my eyes at him. Dumb hillbilly.

He was facing away so he didn't see when Jenner snatched the bottle of alcohol from his hand, not stopping in his tracks as he continued down the hall. "Energy use is being prioritized," Jenner explained monotonously.

"Air isn't a priority? And lights?" Dale asked, looking around at the ceiling.

Jenner drank from the bottle as Dale talked and continued walking away. "It isn't up to me," the lights behind him shut off and I wondered if maybe he had planned that for some kind of sick dramatic effect. "Zone 5 is shutting itself down."

I looked over and shared a brief look of suspicion with Daryl before running to catch up with everyone else.

Daryl ran further up ahead, catching up to Jenner. "Hey!" he called, squeezing past everyone. "Hey, what the hell's that mean?"

Jenner still wasn't answering, though Daryl was right beside him now.

"Hey, man I'm talkin' to you!" Daryl was clearly getting quite ticked now. "What do ya mean its shuttin' itself down? How can a buildin' do anything?"

"You'd be surprised."

I saw Rick and a few of the other men race out of a room ahead of us and I shot forward, reaching Glenn and grabbing his hand. He looked down at me, trying to smile, but he was clearly too freaked out to manage that.

"Jenner, what's happening?" Rick asked, urgency forcing his tone to firmness.

"The system is dropping all its non-essential uses of power. Its designed to keep the computers running until the last possible second." Jenner said, not looking away from his path. Jenner mumbled some crap about some "half hour mark" as we walked into the computer room.

As we rounded the corner, I glanced up at the clock, still ticking away on that wall. "00:31:28"

"Right on schedule," Jenner muttered, continuing up onto the steps of the platform. Before he was halfway up the short steps, he turned around and handed the bottle of alcohol out to Daryl.

Daryl yanked it away, glaring at Jenner and spilling a little bit of his precious booze. I wanted to roll my eyes again, but I knew now was definitely not the time to let our petty disagreements get in the way of our survival.

Jenner looked up at the rest of us and said, "It was the French," then started to walk away.

"What?" I asked, making him turn around again.

"They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in their labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution." Jenner cast his eyes down at the ground and tried to hide the embarrassment in his eyes. He had been the last to hold out and he couldn't even finish working on the cure.

"What happened?" Jacqui asked.

Jenner shrugged as if the answer was simple. "Same thing that's happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice. The world runs on fossil fuels, I mean… how stupid is that?"

I agreed, but apparently Shane didn't take kindly to his answer. Rick jumped in between the two men before Shane could puff his chest out any further and bruise the poor doctor with his massive pecks.

When Rick was sure Shane wasn't going to try anything funny, he turned back to us. "Everyone, go get your stuff, we're getting out of here. NOW!"

We all scrambled to turn and run for the door. I stopped mid-stride when lights flashed and a loud honking rang through the room, reminding me that I was still nursing a hangover. Damn. I clutched at my head with one hand and tried to stand up straight, but I wasn't sure how well I was doing.

I looked up at the big computer screen and saw the bright words "30 minutes until decontamination".

Jenner punched a few buttons up by his desk and the lights and noise stopped, leaving us all confused.

"Lets go!" Glenn yelled.

We all began to move forward again, but we didn't get far before the door closed.

I ran when I saw it dropping, thinking maybe I could hold it up long enough for someone else stronger to get over and hold it while we all got through. But, even with me running at my fastest, the door was shut before I got there. I threw my body against it, beating it once with the side of my fist. I grunted as I hit it and my breath became deep.

"Did he just lock us in?" Glenn asked, ever the innocently oblivious one. "He just locked us in!"

I spun around slowly, my head tilted down and my eyes narrowed but trained on Jenner. I ran past Daryl and grabbed the bottle out of his hand, ignoring his "Hey!" I stomped up the stairs, beginning to run at the man, the bottle poised high in the air. "You son of a bitch!" I yelled, starting to bring the bottle down in an arc.

But before it could make contact, Shane and T-dog were pulling me away.

I wanted to throw the bottle right in that doctor's smug face, but I knew it would just be a waste of alcohol. "I'm good!" I growled and yanked myself angrily away from the two men with a huff.

I flipped the bottle up, watching Jenner as his eyes followed me warily around the room. I took a long gulp and tossed the bottle over to Daryl.

I was well aware of everyone in the room staring after me with surprised expressions. No one had ever seen the full brunt of my fury but Glenn before.

I paced around, not caring to listen as Rick and Jenner had a ridiculously calm discussion.

"What happens in 28 minutes?" I heard Rick ask. I rested my hands on a desk and leaned over, trying to catch my breath.

"This place was designed to keep any organisms from getting out. In the case of a terrorist attack for example, HITs are deployed to prevent anything from getting out."

"Fuck!" I yelled, spinning around and kicking a chair.

"HITs?" Rick asked.

How was it I knew more about this stuff than the adults. I knew what would be happening in 28 minutes and I knew I did not want to be around when it happened.

I ran to the door, kicking out at it and banging on it with my fists.

Over the sound of the beating that door was taking, I heard Vi say, "HITs: High Impulse Thermobaric fuel explosives."

I continued kicking and hitting the door, only pulling away when someone offered me an axe. There were two others hitting against the door with axes with me, but all the clanging was no where near enough to drown out the noises of despair around us.

* * *

><p><strong>Ta-da! :) Hope you liked it! Review and tell me what you think :D <strong>


	34. Blown To Pieces

DARYL'S POV:

I continued hacking away at the door, ignoring my sore muscles and pounding head.

I glanced down at Kaiya out of the corner of my eye. She swung the axe hard at the door, her jaw set in grim determination. The sight of her made me hit the door harder. She didn't deserve to die like this.

I hit harder and harder, almost not realizing it when Kaiya stopped and sighed in defeat. I turned and looked at her. There were only a few tears lingering over her cheeks, and her eyes were closed, head hanging low.

I noticed Jenner looking at her in confusion and slight guilty discomfort.

Glenn began to walk to her, so I turned back to the door, still hacking away. I knew if I turned around, I could count on Glenn's arms to be holding her steady.

"It's gonna be okay," Glenn murmured quietly enough that only Kaiya and I heard. "We're going to get out of here."

I hit harder, remembering the tears glistening and using the helplessness I felt at her unfair fate to fuel my swinging arms. I couldn't let this happen to her.

The clangs of the axe on the door filled the room, echoing around all of us.

Then, without warning, the door slid up. I stood in shock for a moment, then a chorus of "GO!" motivated me to drop the axe and turn to grab Kaiya. But she was already speeding past me, Glenn's hand in her own.

I grimaced and ran after the rest of them, not even pausing when Jacqui and T-dog had a fight about whether or not she was staying. I ran to my room and grabbed my already packed bag, then hightailed it out of there, heading for the lobby.

The door was locked, though. T-dog picked up a nearby chair and tried using the leg to bash at the window. But the leg just kept bouncing back at him.

"Get down!" Shane yelled, holding his shotgun up at the window. He fired and I had expected a large explosion of glass shards, but there was just a small _tink_ sound as the bullet fell to the ground.

I looked around, worried when I saw that Kaiya and Glenn were nowhere near. I shook it off; they would be back soon.

I heard a pair of feet and turned to see Glenn running up to us. Where was Kaiya?

Just as I was about to ask, Rick shouted, "Everyone get down!" I turned back to look at him. He had a grenade in his hand and was about to pull the pin.

I spun back to Glenn and pushed him in the middle of his chest, knocking him down, and falling over beside him.

I shielded my head, hoping Glenn was smart enough to do the same.

I wasn't sure if it was because I knew Kaiya would be completely heartbroken had Glenn died, or if it was because I had found myself gaining more and more respect for him that I pushed him down out of the way of the blast. He seemed to be the only one to know just how she ticked (or at least as much as you could with that girl) and he was always the best at cheering her up. I had to respect him at least a little for that alone.

The blast sent glass shards and small metal pieces skittering across the tile of the lobby. I knew that was only a small scale of what was going to happen to this whole place in a few minutes.

I peeked up from under my arms when it stopped raining debris. I quickly stood when I saw everyone else getting up. I grabbed Glenn by the shoulder before he could run out to the cars. "Where's Kaiya?" I asked.

He scowled and said, "She's trying to help Dale and get Andrea to give up on this suicide attempt."

I let my hand drop and he bolted out of the window. I knew Kaiya would have put up a major fight with Glenn to get him to leave her there.

I stared back down the hall we had come from, fighting the urge to go back and be with her. I wanted nothing more than to hold her before we were all blown up, but I didn't have it in me to do myself in. I just figured out I loved someone and I did the stupidest thing I could: I ran.

I spun on my heel and raced after the others, my heart aching like I had never thought it could. I bit down my feelings, letting anger rise out of them, welcoming it warmly. I shot between the eyes of every walker that popped up, using the axe once of twice to knock a few walkers headless.

I threw the weapons in the back of the truck and jumped in the drivers seat, repressing a sigh and a few tears when I saw Kaiya's backpack in the floorboard. She had two bags. That black athletics bag she put everything in and then this one. I assumed it was her school bag.

I closed my eyes and leaned down on the steering wheel before the CDC exploded. The heat rolled off the flames in waves, reaching me through the truck cab's metal exterior. I kept my eyes closed and my forehead pressed on the top of the steering wheel as the metal parts of the Center for Disease Control blew to pieces… along with the only girl I had ever even been able to stand.

When all was silent again, I looked up and saw a familiar body running to the RV with Dale and Andrea, towards the many reaching arms coming from the RV's door.

I sighed in relief, putting a hand to the spot over my heart. It felt a little better now. Lighter.

I turned the key in the ignition and waited as the engine hummed for a few minutes and then turned over before pulling away behind the rest of the camp.

I was strangely happy for someone whose one source of anything resembling hope had just been blown up, whose brother was wandering around zombie-filled streets with one hand, and whose whole life had been completely changed by surfacing of the undead.


	35. Motorcycle Ride

KAIYA'S POV:

We were only a few miles outside of the city when Daryl's truck broke down.

I looked out of the window and just happened to look backwards in the general (not specific!) area of Daryl's light blue pickup. It just stopped. No warning or anything. But as soon as it was down, smoke began billowing out of the hood.

He was in the very back of the caravan, so no one would have noticed if I hadn't stood and said, "Dale, you might want to stop."

He looked at me questioningly but pulled over on the side of the road, stopping the rest of the vehicles between us and Daryl.

I started to get out of the RV, but as I passed Dale, I looked over and said, "Daryl's truck broke down." I didn't wait for a response as I hopped down to the paved road beneath us.

I wasn't sure why I was going over to him; I was totally livid at him. But eventually I convinced myself it was for the good of the group. I'd been working on cars with my dad since I was 10. I could help and we would be back on the road sooner. I faltered in my steps and then started walking again as others began pouring out of the cars to stretch their cramped bodies.

I walked over to Daryl who was leaning over the hood of his truck, head bent, hands both rested on the top of the grille.

"She done?" I asked, crossing my arms and shifting all my weight onto one leg.

He turned, a surprised expression on his face. He looked me over and then nodded.

I stepped closer, frowning at him and then pushed past him so I could see under the hood. I tinkered with a few things, but none of them did anything. I pulled my hands back. "Yep. That's it. She's not gonna run again," I said, wiping my grease smeared hands on my jeans.

He looked at me, surprised again. "Ya know cars?"

I nodded, cocking a brow. "Worked on them with my dad a lot ever since I was little." He still looked surprised, so I scoffed and mumbled angrily, "If you aint the most sexist hillbilly I ever met." I scowled when I realized how redneck my comment sounded (I really had been hanging out with Daryl too much) and continued to walk away.

But I stopped when I heard some metal screeching. I turned around and saw Daryl standing up in the bed of his truck next to that tarp-covered lump he wouldn't let anyone touch. He started pulling the gray tarp off of it, but I still couldn't see because of the cab.

I walked around the side of the truck, my arms still crossed. He glanced down at me, but I chose to ignore him. The more he pulled the tarp off, the more black shiny metal was beginning to show.

"Motorcycle?" I asked of no one in particular.

He nodded, not looking up. "Was Merle's."

I felt a little sad for him, and for Merle, but I didn't let that get in the way of me being mad at him. He began to pull the bike off the bed of the truck.

I will not admit to anyone that I spent the entire time he was pulling it off watching his muscles bulge beneath the tan skin of his arms. I think he noticed. Actually I'm one hundred percent sure he did, because he smirked as he walked the bike past me and said, "You dropped something."

I looked around. "Huh?"

He stopped right in front of me. "Your jaw."

I blushed, suddenly angry at him all over again. I was mad at him, but insanely attracted to him, and he didn't even want me.

I tried to ignore that and focus on the bike so I didn't have to look at his smug face. "I've never ridden a bike before," I muttered, still staring at it, and not really meaning to let that little piece of info slip.

He looked down at the bike. I took his distraction as a chance to look up at his face. It seemed a little redder than it had been a few moments ago. He seemed almost a little bit shy. "Ya- uh… Ya wanna ride?" He didn't look up until the sentence was out. His eyes were squinting, thought there was no sun behind me. He seemed to be preparing himself to get shut down.

I thought about it. The world was over, so my mom couldn't kill me for riding it anymore. And what else did I have to lose?

"Sure," I said, watching as everyone else began filing back into the cars. "But I'm still pissed at you."

He grinned, though it seemed he was honestly affected by my anger. He pulled the bike forward a little and as we passed by the RV, I noticed Glenn looking out the window at me, a little frightened looking.

I smiled up at him and reached into the collar of my shirt, lifting up the yarn and fruit loop necklace.

He smiled a tiny bit, but he was still very hesitant when he nodded.

I grinned and continued walking forward with Daryl. We would be heading off the caravan now. Daryl pulled on a black leather vest. My hair was still up, but it was still very long even up. So I twisted it around the ponytail and tied it like that.

He got on first, handing me his crossbow. "Put it on."

I shrugged and pulled the strap over my head like I had seen Daryl do so many times. I twisted so it rested on my back and then lifted one of my short legs over the side of the motorcycle. It was kind of hard getting onto the bike, me being so short, but Daryl found it pretty amusing. I could hear him chuckle quietly.

"Shut up," I grumbled, wrapping my arms around his waist and clutching at the cloth over his abdomen.

He went silent and kicked the bike into gear. I leaned my head on his back, breathing in the smell of him. Woods, motor oil, and Daryl. And the leather smell of that vest.

"Hold on tight," he called over the roar of the motorcycle.

I squeezed my arms tighter, leaning the side of my head on his back.

Then we sped off down the road.


	36. Zombie Hunting Jerk Face

DARYL'S POV:

I tried to ignore the warmth in my chest at her touch. It seemed everything had changed with the discovery of love. But nothing really had. Everything was perfectly the same. Yet everything seemed to have a sweeter tinge to it. Her touch had affected me before, more than I cared to admit, but now it was a bigger reaction.

I shook my head and scowled. I didn't fall in love. I was Daryl Goddamn Dixon. But I knew if I peeked over my shoulder at her, I would change my mind immediately. So I kept my eyes trained ahead.

Then we came to a highway filled with cars.

I groaned quietly and kept going, pulling up to the edge of the crowd of cars. There was no way through that the RV could fit in. I tried leading them through a clear path and for a minute it seemed like we would be able to get it through. But then, the RV's engine started steaming, letting off a shrill whistling sound.

I shut the bike off and put the kickstand down. I patted the side of Kaiya's leg. "Ya can get off now," I said.

She got off and handed me my crossbow, not making eye contact with me. So she was still mad at me?

I sighed as she walked away.

I guess I couldn't blame her. I would be mad at me, too.

Everyone began getting out of the vehicles and searching around in the cars for anything useful. Like car parts, medicine, or food. I hoped there weren't any walkers in these cars.

I stood from the bike and watched everyone spread out. I watched as Kaiya pulled her hair down and let it splay out in a black cascade down her back. She went over to where Lori and Carol were juggling the kids and searching through cars. She watched the kids so the two moms could search through the cars.

Dale was fixing the RV with the help of Glenn. T-dog and Shane were looking under the hood of every car in sight. Rick was checking the perimeter.

I walked around and decided on a red car with a blue tinted windshield. I opened the back door and searched through the bags stuffed in the floorboard. All I found that was actually good any more was a can of peaches and a bottle of aspirin.

I took them back over to the RV and stopped at the door. Andrea was in there. I looked down at the can of peaches and walked in. I set the can right in front of her. "Ya hungry?" I asked, sitting down across from her.

She shook her head and laid her head on her arms, looking out the window.

I turned and looked, too.

We had a clear view of Kaiya playing with the two kids. She held Sophia's hand as she bent down to the height of Carl and told him something that must've been hilarious; Carl was cracking up.

I smiled a little bit.

"She saved my life, you know," Andrea said.

I had almost forgotten she was even there.

"What do ya mean?" I asked, confused.

"Back in the CDC. I was going to stay. I didn't want to live like this anymore. But her and Dale, they stayed. She reminds me so much of Amy. Young, innocent, beautiful, silly… she can have fun and goof around even in the middle of all of this."

I looked back over at Kaiya, where Andrea was still looking. She was right about everything.

"She spent more time with her than even I did. I feel like with her, I have a little part of Amy with me still, you know?"

I couldn't say I did. With Merle, the only thing that could keep Merle around was himself. That was just the way he was, though.

"She told me what I needed to hear. It hurt, but she had to do it. She's awfully smart… awfully mature for a sixteen year old, huh?"

I frowned and said, "Ya got no idea."

She looked up. "You care about her, too, don't you?"

I looked down, unable to answer yes or no.

"I know you do. Maybe the others don't see the way you look at her, or the way she looks at you, but I see it. I think Glenn might, but he doesn't see as much as I do; I'm a girl, I have an eye for those things."

I chuckled. "Oh really?"

She nodded, half-smiling. "You depend on her."

I scowled. I didn't depend on anyone.

I pushed the can of peaches toward her and said, "Ya better eat." then stood and exited the RV. I glanced over at the two kids and Kaiya.

Kaiya was on her knees, looking down at the pavement and the two kids were standing on either side of her, smiling. There was a look of concentration in her eyes and a large chunk of yellow chalk in her right hand. She leaned forward and drew a few marks onto the ground, then held her arms up and said, "Ta-da!" dramatically.

Carl and Sophia peered over her artwork and both erupted into giggles.

She frowned and crossed her arms. "Everyone's a critic."

I shook my head and turned to go look through more cars.

I was halfway through the third car when I heard everyone start yelling in hushed whispers to get under the cars. I was a bit further behind everyone, so I couldn't see anyone but Dale on top of the RV and he was laying flat on his belly. Over the cars, I could see all of them. Walkers. A lot of them.

I crouched down low and started slinking around the cars, looking around under the cars. I had to make sure she was okay.

A few feet away, I saw Kaiya pushing Carl and Sophia under a car. She crawled under another just ahead of them.

I breathed a silent sigh of relief and then saw T-dog slash his arm on a jagged piece of metal from a car door. He made a pained expression and gripped at it.

My eyes widened when I caught sight of a walker that had been alerted by the freshly spilled blood. He rounded the cars, starting to come toward T-dog.

I grabbed the nearest elongated object and rushed forward quietly. When I was close enough to grab the walker's head, I shoved the object upward through the base of it's head.

T-dog gave me a terrified look, but I kneeled down and put a finger to my lips. I moved toward him and grabbed his feet, sliding him down onto the pavement. I opened the door of the car he had been leaning against, thankful that the door didn't creak. I grabbed the shoulders of the body in the drivers seat and threw it down onto T-dog, covering him with the carcass.

I grabbed the walker I had killed and pulled it over myself just in time for a cluster of walkers pass by us. I closed my eyes, trying to ignore the terrible stench of death. When I opened my eyes again, there were no feet around me.

I stayed still a few minutes longer and then a soft scream came from further up by Kaiya and the kids. It was Sophia.

I jerked myself up, catapulting the body off of myself and running over. I was pretty far away, but I could still see that Sophia was crawling out from under the car she had been hiding under, running from two walkers grabbing for her.

Kaiya emerged from the underside of the car in front of the kids'. "Sophia," she called, drawing the walkers' attention to the closer meal. "Go back to your mom. Slowly." She started to backtrack, down the decline of the hill leading to the woods as Sophia got behind the walkers and ran back over to the cars.

I pushed my legs to run faster, but Rick got to the tree line Kaiya had disappeared behind before I could. I hopped up on top of the hood of a car, my crossbow in my hand, and held a hand up to shield my eyes from the sun as I watched the tree line for any sight of movement.

I knew running into the forest after them would only risk more campers. So I bit my lip and turned around, enraged.

Glenn was standing tense at the edge of the road, watching the trees concernedly. Everyone was. But none as much as Glenn and Andrea.

I began to walk back over to my motorcycle when I spotted something pale yellow on the ground.

On the pavement in chalk, was a stick figure drawing with short hair, a crossbow in one hand and a shotgun in the other. There was a fat smoking cigar in his grinning mouth and his eyebrows were arched evilly.

Underneath the figure, the words "_Zombie Hunting Jerk Face_" was written.

I rolled my eyes. Only Kaiya.

Then at the top, I noticed an arrow pointing to the stick figure. At the top of the arrow, it said, "Daryl".

I looked back at the trees. She would come back. She had to. Because Andrea was right.

* * *

><p><strong>Review! :) Hope you liked it! <strong>


	37. To The Rescue

KAIYA'S POV:

"Get under the cars!" Rick yelled in a whisper.

I grabbed the two kids and pushed each under a separate car. Then I got under one in front of them.

My heart beat faster. If it had only been one or two walkers out here with us, we wouldn't have had to take cover. It must've been a lot.

Where was Daryl?

I looked around on the pavement. Everyone was laying under them. Andrea wasn't, she was still inside the RV. I could see her from here in the window. I hoped the walkers weren't smart enough to look through windows. '_Come on Andrea, get down!_' I thought, biting on my lip.

I looked around and noticed tons of feet. Dozens of feet. All in ripped up shoes bent at awkward angles. They scuffled along on the pavement.

There was one pair of feet, though, that didn't move and blood was coming from it. It was pretty far away, but I could tell it was T-dog. '_Oh no, T-dog, get down!_'

Then a pair of stumbling feet came towards him. I wanted to close my eyes but I couldn't.

Then Daryl's familiar work boots stealthily snuck up behind the walker and took him down. Then he pulled T-dog down onto the ground, laying a walker's body on top of him. I saw more feet coming their way and bit my lip even harder, surprised I hadn't drawn blood. '_Not Daryl_'. But, just in time, Daryl pulled another walker's body over his own. The walkers around him passed.

It wasn't over yet, though. I watched as feet after feet passed us by.

Finally, the sound of soles scraping against pavement stopped.

I looked up and saw Sophia beginning to inch her way out from under the car. She looked up when she reached the edge, but let out a quiet scream as a walker I hadn't seen began to reach for her.

"Sophia!" I called, making my way out from under the car. When I stood, I saw that there were two walkers trying to grab her. I was out from under my car before Sophia was, but the walkers were still focused on her.

"Sophia!" I called, drawing the walkers' attention. They started to come closer to me. "Go back to your mom. Slowly."

The girl nodded and did as I told her, not watching as I ran backwards down the hill.

"Come on!" I yelled at them, kicking dust up at their faces.

They growled and started moving faster.

I turned and ran into the woods, going straight the whole time. I could still hear them grunting behind me. I glanced back. They were pretty far behind. Thank goodness I'm a fast runner.

I sped up a little more, passing trees and leaves and grass and rocks. I came to a creek when I finally stopped.

I turned around, but they were no longer in sight. I heard some twigs snapping in a bush nearby and broke out into a sprint, racing along the edge of the creek. I ran and ran until my lungs couldn't stand it.

I slowed to a halt and bent down, resting my hand on my knees and trying to catch my breath. I looked around. Everything was oddly quiet.

I wandered around for hours, trying to find anything that resembled a way back to the highway, but I was too tired and my brain was too fried for me to remember any directions I had come from.

The sun was beating down on me through the canopy of tree leaves above. I thought about Daryl. He never seemed to complain about the heat as much as the rest of us. Could be because he was a crazy redneck who spent most his summer time outside in the heat… or it could be because he's pretty damn smart and ripped the sleeves off every shirt he owns.

I sighed and grabbed at the sleeve of my T-shirt. "Sorry," I mumbled, tearing at the sleeve. It came off surprisingly easy. My sweat had saturated the stitches, so it was easier to tear.

With both sleeves off, I sighed in relief. It wasn't a completely reprieve from the hot sun, but it was a big improvement.

"When I get back, I'm apologizing to Daryl for making fun of his sleevelessness."

The thought of Daryl made me kind of sad. Were they looking for me? Was Daryl worried about me? Would Daryl even care if I got eaten out here?

I sighed.

Probably not.

It was probably just my overheated imagination, but the more I thought about him, the more I thought that noise far off in the distance sounded like Daryl calling my name.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you liked it! Please review, they make me happy! :) <strong>


	38. At Least We Know

DARYL'S POV:

I walked through the woods with Shane, Rick, and Glenn behind me. We came to the creek Rick had killed the walkers at and hopped down into it.

"Ya sure this is where ya saw her?" I asked, looking around.

Rick nodded. "I was coming through that bush right there, but she heard me and I guess she thought I was a walker, because she took off down that way. She's a really fast runner."

I looked up and saw Glenn give a small wistful smile at the ground.

We looked around but didn't find much.

I looked up over to the ground. "Clear prints right here. Looks like she tried to head back to the highway," I mumbled following the trail up to dry ground.

We circled around a cluster of trees.

I kneeled down and frowned at the tracks. "She was doin' just fine till right here. All she had to do was keep goin'. But she veered off that way." I pointed off to the right through a path made of tree branches.

"Why would she do that?" Glenn asked, fear and concern in his voice.

"Maybe she saw something. Spooked her. Made her run off," Shane offered.

It would take quite a bit to scare that girl away from something. I didn't bother voicing this though, for fear of upsetting Glenn even more. The last thing we needed was him going all hysterical on us out here.

"Walker," Glenn gasped, his voice cracking with the prospect of one of those things after what he considered his sister.

I shook my head. "I don't see any other footprints. Only hers." I eyed the design of the soles of her shoes.

It was oddly familiar from the time she stomped her foot in the dirt then Amy dared her to make a shoe print on my ass. She had thought it was hilarious and I had to admit it was pretty funny, but I still didn't exactly like getting kicked in the ass.

"So what do we do? All of us press on?" Shane asked, gazing up at Rick.

"No," Rick said, still watching the footprints. "Better if you and Glenn get back up to the highway. People are gonna start panicking. Let them know we're on her trail, doing everything we can. But most of all keep everybody calm."

Shane stood and nodded. "I'll keep 'em busy scavenging cars. I'll think up some other chores. That'll keep tem occupied."

Glenn looked like he was about to argue, but he also looked like he was about to keel over where he was standing. He was too worn out to keep searching, but he felt he had to; she was the only thing he had left. But one mean glare from me and he kept his mouth shut, following Shane indignantly through the woods back to the highway.

"Kind weird," I said, slinking along after her trail. "She's been huntin' with her dad since she was little. Ya'd think she'd have been able to make her way back alright. She's a tough 'un."

Rick nodded. "How do you know so much about her, anyhow?"

I clenched my jaw. "Guess ya could call her… a friend."

He didn't ask any more questions as we followed her trail which I was thankful for.

After about 15 minutes of quiet, Rick pointed down at the ground. "Her tracks are gone."

"Nah," I said, shaking my head and moving forward. "They're faint. But they aint gone." I pointed down, running my finger along the trail. "She came through here."

"How can you tell?" Rick asked, looking around. "All I see is dirt and grass."

I kept my eyes down, moving forward as the trail did. "Ya wanna lesson in trackin' or do ya wanna find Kaiya so we can get our asses off that interstate?"

He stayed silent.

We continued on for about 10 more minutes before a snapping twig made us simultaneously drop to a crouch.

Rick pointed over a bush where we could see a walker stumbling along down the hill.

I gestured for Rick to around in front of him and I would go behind him.

Rick nodded and ran around in front of him. When the walker looked up at him a few yards away, Rick held his hand up and pointed at him, whistling like a bird.

I was behind him by now. Just as the thing started growling, I pulled the trigger of my crossbow, sending an arrow flying through his skull.

He dropped with a thud.

We both moved forward, approaching the dead beast.

I yanked the arrow out of his head, then looked around for a minute. "Kaiya!" I called. When I looked down, Rick was inspecting the walker's face. "What're ya lookin' for?"

"Skin under the fingernails," Rick replied.

I grimaced at the thought of this thing clawing at Kaiya. Unfortunately enough, I think in pictures. I closed my eyes briefly and when I opened them, threw a glare at a nearby tree.

Rick opened the thing's mouth. "It fed recently. There's flesh caught in its teeth."

I felt my stomach drop. "What kinda flesh?" I asked, kneeling down.

"Only one way to know for sure," Rick ripped the shirt of the walker open, exposing a large belly. Rick started to take out a small pocket knife.

I put a hand to his shoulder to stop him. "I'll do it." If this thing really had eaten Kaiya, I wanted to be the one to find out. I started to take out my hunting knife. It was the same one I had used when I showed Kaiya how to skin a squirrel. "How many kills have you skinned or gutted in your life?" I asked, giving him reasons other than the one I had in mind to let me do this. "Anyway, mine's sharper."

I lifted my hands and drove the point of the blade through the skin of the walker's stomach. When it was in, I pulled up, slicing a large line up its torso.

Rick looked away, getting paler by the second.

I had to do that about three times, each time ignoring Rick's disgusted looks, until finally I said, "Now here's the bad part."

I grabbed either side of the jagged cut and pulled them apart, revealing the walker's insides. I stuck my gloved hand inside the dark red mush, throwing everything not useful away. I felt around deeper in the walker's stomach.

"Yeah," I grunted. "Hoss had a big meal not long ago. I feel it in there."

Rick looked like he was about to throw up.

I pulled something out and dropped it right in front of Rick, almost laughing when he jumped backwards. "There's the gut bag."

"I got this," Rick said, pulling out his pocket knife and cutting the slimy lining of the sack. He pulled out something that looked like half-digested seed and wiped it on the ground.

I poked around inside it with my knife. I pulled out a bloody chunk of fur, impaling it on the tip of my knife. "Gross bastard had himself a woodchuck for lunch," I murmured, flinging the ripped up evidence away. I stood and grabbed my crossbow.

"At least we know," Rick said, standing.

"At least we know," I agreed, walking along.

* * *

><p><strong>Review! :)<strong>


	39. Another Sister

ANDREA'S POV:

When Shane and Glenn got back from searching through the woods for Kaiya, Shane assigned us all chores to keep us occupied. Though I was busy helping Dale and Shane drive cars off the road, I had Kaiya's safety in the back of my mind, worrying over whether she was alright.

I looked over at Carol and Sophia who were standing on the side of the road, watching the woods worriedly. I knew Carol and Sophia felt a little guilty that Kaiya had gone out there and saved Sophia. Carol was thankful to Kaiya for doing it, but she felt terrible that doing so had landed her out there.

Carol walked over to Dale at the front of the RV. "Why aren't we all out there lookin'?" she asked, gesturing to the woods. "Why are we movin' cars?"

I frowned. I knew how she felt. If we had more people out there, we had a better chance of finding her… but at the same time, that increased our chances of losing more people.

"We have to clear enough room so I can get the RV turned around as soon as its running. Now that we have fuel, we can double back to a bypass Glenn flagged on the map," Dale explained.

Shane walked over to stand beside Carol. "That be a hell of a lot easier than tryin' to get through this mess."

"We're not going till we get that girl back," Carol said, Glenn and I nodding in agreement.

"That goes without saying," Lori said, walking past.

"Rick and Daryl are on it. Its just a matter of time," Shane said, staring off at the tree line. I hoped he was right.

"What was that? All of them just marching along like that?" Glenn asked, taking a drink from his water bottle. I knew Kaiya's disappearance was affecting him the most.

If not Daryl.

"Herd?" Shane offered. "Sounds about right. Like that night camp got attacked. Wandering pack. Only fewer."

Memories surfaced at the mention of that night. Amy. Thinking about her made me suddenly more motivated to find Kaiya. I knew Amy would've killed me if I let anything happen to her. I smiled slightly and remembered what Kaiya had said to get me out of the CDC.

"_Andrea, come on! We've got to go, you cant just stay here! This is insane!" Kaiya yelled, kneeling down to me. _

"_I don't want to live like this. I don't want to die like the rest of them. I don't want to get torn apart and eaten. This is how I want to die." I explained, my voice oddly calm. _

"_Andrea, look at me," Kaiya said, putting her hands on either side of my face and forcing me to look up into her eyes. "Think about Amy." _

_I flinched at the mention of her, and I wanted to bark at her not to talk about Amy like I did with the others, but I could bring myself to; she had flinched, too. _

"_She would kill me if I let you do this." She was beginning to laugh at the truth of her statement through her tears. _

_I chuckled and nodded. "You're right, she would," I agreed, nodding. _

_She grabbed my hand and hauled me up and we ran down the hall to the doors. _

"Okay, come on, people, we still got a lot to do!" Shane called, breaking me out of my reverie.

I nodded and set to work steering the cars Shane was pushing.

It was around sunset when I walked over to where Carol and Sophia were still watching the woods for any sign of Kaiya. I put a hand on Carol's back, hoping it was comforting. I had never been very good with comforting people.

"It'll be dark soon," Carol stated, her voice cracking a bit.

"They'll find her," I said. They had to.

Carol nodded.

I turned around and walked up to Dale. "Where's my gun?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"You don't need that just now do you?" he asked. The way he was avoiding eye contact made me suspicious.

"My father gave it to me. Its mine," I said, becoming angry.

"I can hold onto it for you," he said, still keeping his eyes focused on everything but me.

"Or you can give it back to me," I said.

Shane walked over. "Everything cool?"

"No," I said, turning to him. "I want my gun back."

"I don't think it's a good idea right now," Dale admitted, his eyes glued to the street.

"Why not?" Shane asked.

Dale looked around for a minute before finally looking at me. "I'm not comfortable with it."

I made a noise of disbelief and looked up at Shane.

"Truth is," he began. "the less guns we have floatin' around camp, the better."

I looked up at him, eyebrows raised. "You handing over your weapon?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Nah, but I'm trained in its use. That's what the rest of y'all need is proper training, but until that time, I think its best that Dale keeps them accounted for."

I scoffed and turned around, walking back toward Carol and Sophia.

Daryl and Rick emerged from the woods, both sweaty and tired-looking. But Kaiya wasn't with them.

"You didn't find her?" Sophia asked, tears evident in her voice.

"Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again. First light," Rick said, stepping over the railing on the side of the road.

"You cant leave her out there on her own. Not at night, alone, in the woods," Carol argued. I understood her feelings on this. I didn't want Kaiya out there alone either. Neither did Glenn or Daryl.

"Huntin' in the darks no good. We'd just be trippin' over ourselves. We'd lose more people," Daryl said begrudgingly. I could tell he wanted more than anything to go back out there and look for her.

"But she's just 16," Lori said, stepping forward and putting an arm around Carol.

"She can take care of herself," Daryl said.

I knew this was true; I had seen her on many accounts hold her own, whether it was just in doing chores, in a fight, or even in just surviving. She knew how to handle herself, but how well could she do on her own? That question along with the thought of the quickly falling night made my stomach flop over. I hoped she was alright.

"I know this is hard, but I'm asking you not to panic," Rick said, looking around at everyone. "We know she was out there."

"And we tracked her for a while," Daryl said, his voice a little softer. He was looking at Sophia as he said this, trying to comfort the quietly crying girl.

She nodded.

"We have to make an organized effort," Rick announced, looking around. "Daryl knows the woods better than anyone. I've asked him to oversee this."

Not only did he know the woods better than the rest of us, he knew Kaiya. Maybe not as good as Glenn, maybe just as good as Glenn, but good enough to know how she would think in these situations. That was a plus.

I chewed on my bottom lip as I wondered what she might be feeling. She was probably tired and hot and hungry. Was she hurt? I sighed.

"Tha- Is that blood?" Carol asked, pointing to Daryl's pant leg.

Everyone looked down at it and Daryl and Rick exchanged a glance.

"We took down a walker," Rick said.

Me, Glenn, Sophia, and Carol all got a little more pale at the thought of all the walkers that could be out there. And this walker could've gotten to her.

I wiped a shaky hand across my forehead.

"There was no sign that he was anywhere near Kaiya," Rick continued.

"How can you know that for sure?" I asked.

"We cut the sum'bitch open. We made sure," Daryl said, only cursing the walker half-heartedly.

If only Kaiya could see how much she meant to all of us, how much we all missed her and wanted her back. Even Daryl only seemed half as angry as before. The other half seemed to be a little sad, depressed even.

Carol sat down with a sigh. "I feel so guilty. She risked her life to save my daughter," she hugged Sophia tighter. "and I didn't even get to thank her."

I turned around before anyone could see the single tear that slid down my face. The first one since Amy's death. And it might just be for the death of another sister.

* * *

><p><strong>Special thank you to Pixie photos! :) Hope you guys are liking it, review! :D <strong>


	40. Damn Realistic Dream

DARYL'S POV:

It seemed Kaiya's sudden absence was affecting everyone to some degree or another.

The two kids were the most revealing in their worries for Kaiya.

Carol felt like she owed it to Kaiya to find her.

Glenn was refusing to eat anything and I was surprised he hadn't chewed his thumb down to a nub by now.

Andrea fretted over her almost as much as Amy had over her when she had gone into Atlanta all those weeks ago. Her words from earlier came back to me. _"She reminds me so much of Amy."_ So she thought of Kaiya as a sister just as Glenn did.

Dale's frown seemed to deepen any time someone reminded him that she was gone. She had been rather fond of the old man, oftentimes referring to him as Gramps.

Rick felt guilty that he hadn't been fast enough to get her out before she bolted. But no one blamed him.

Lori was worried for Kaiya, too. Although, it might have been more for Carl's sake than Kaiya's.

T-dog didn't seem to really comprehend that she was gone; he was in immense pain with the giant gash on his arm. But when anyone said it, a line of worry arose between his brows.

Even Shane seemed a little bit concerned for her wellbeing, adamantly holding to the notion that she couldn't have gone far.

And then there was me. I was in love with the girl. I think that's all that needs to be said.

That night, for once, I didn't take watch. I crawled into a nearby car and leaned back in the somewhat comfortable seat.

When I slipped into a dream, I barely realized I was dreaming, it was so real.

I was in the woods, searching for her. I had my crossbow up and I was lurking around trees and under branches, looking all around for her.

I heard a twig snap and looked up, but there was a tree right in front of me. I side-stepped around it and came into a little clearing.

There, with her back to me, was Kaiya. Her long black hair was perfectly smooth and shining in the bright sun which brought out an almost blue-ish tint in it. She was wearing a white sundress that came about halfway down her thigh. There was only one strap and it was tied over her right shoulder.

I expelled a low breath and lowered my crossbow, blushing.

She must've heard because she turned, hazel eyes open wide. She was barefoot in the bright green grass. When she turned, I could see that there was a daisy tucked behind her ear with her hair. When she caught sight of me, she smiled, revealing white teeth lined with full bright red lips. Her smooth skin glowed in the sunlight. The scenery around us blurred in comparison to her beauty as her hair whipped around her when she turned.

My breath caught.

She blushed and looked down, biting her lip and clasping her hands behind her back, twisting her toes on the ground like a young girl.

I stepped forward, entranced. My footsteps made no sound. When I got close enough, I raised a hand and was about to cup her soft cheek when she giggled and bounded backwards a step, giving me a "come and get me" smile.

I smirked and took off, chasing her around in circles. She really was fast. She kept ahead of me the whole time, looking behind her and giggling.

Finally I caught up to her and threw my arms around her waist.

She laughed and grabbed onto my arms, turning and falling over so that she pushed me down, landing on my chest with a laugh. She propped her elbows up on my chest and rested her head in her hands, looking at me with interest.

"What?" I asked, anxious to hear her voice.

"I miss you, you know?" she said, her voice smooth and light.

I reached a hand up and rubbed a circle over her cheek with my thumb.

She leaned her face into my palm with a sigh and closed her eyes. She rolled off of me and laid beside me, my arm under her neck. She grabbed onto my hand over her shoulder and put one hand over my heart watching my face.

I looked down at her and leaned forward to kiss her gently on the forehead.

I pulled away marveling at the idea of me laying next to her. Her in that white dress, perfectly clean and beautiful. Then me, dirty, sweaty, and in torn up old clothes covered in dirt. This was a true Beauty and the Beast situation.

"Daryl," she said.

I loved the way my name sounded coming from her mouth. Her voice was like the richest chocolate, or the smoothest and most addicting liquor.

"Yes?" I asked, looking up at the sky. It was almost sunset.

"I-" she sounded like she had wanted to say something, but when she caught sight of the sky, she gasped and sat up. "I have to go!" She took off through the trees.

"Kaiya!" I yelled, scrambling to stand and run after her.

The sun sunk down past the horizon and the moon rose, casting an eerie white light over everything.

I stopped when I saw her standing a few feet away. She had her back to me again, only now her hair was a frazzled mess, tangled and ruffled. In her right hand, she held a rose. But she was gripping it in her fist so tightly that blood was leaking down over her knuckles and onto the ground.

"Kaiya," I called softly.

She began to slowly turn. Her face was pale and her eyes hopeless with tears running down her face.

I stepped forward to pull her into a hug. But just before I got to her, I blinked. And during the time it took for me to blink, she turned into a monster.

Her eyes were now dulled, bloodshot in the whites, making the hazel stand out so I could see just how beautiful she used to be. Her skin was now gray and there were bite marks covering her arms and there was blood trickling from her mouth. Her lips curled up and she let out a growl, lunging toward me.

"Kaiya!" I yelled, sitting straight up and hitting my head on the roof of the car I had slept in. "Fuck!" I yelled, gripping my head. I looked around then rubbed my eyes, falling back with a groan. "Just a dream," I muttered. "Just a dream." I ran a hand through my hair and started to get out of the car.

"Damn realistic dream," I grumbled, walking toward the rest of the group.


	41. Nightmares

GLENN'S POV:

Daryl walked over to the rest of us as he rubbed the back of his neck. His eye were bruised-looking and a little red. His hair was a mess, but then again, when wasn't it? And in his eyes I could see it.

I hadn't been the only one to dream about Kaiya last night. I knew very well the look of someone who had a nightmare, being a very nightmare prone child and all.

I used to be able to get over it, though. This time I couldn't. Because Kaiya wasn't here. When we were kids, she would sit up all night with me until I fell back asleep and she told me she wouldn't let the monsters from my dreams get me.

Being such a child I had believed her. When I got older, I passed it off as just a coincidence that my dreams had stopped ever since her comforting me. But then, with the arrival of walkers, my nightmares had returned. But, with Kaiya here with me, they hadn't been very bad. They had always ended with Kaiya saving my ass.

But now, with Kaiya gone, the nightmares were even worse than they had been before. Because now, I wasn't dying like in most nightmares. But Kaiya was, and I was helpless to do anything. I couldn't prevent it, postpone it, or replace her with myself.

I replayed the nightmare in my mind as we waited for the other campers.

She had been standing alone in the woods.

I called, "Kaiya! I cant believe it, I've finally found you!" I ran to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

She turned slowly, and when she was fully turned around, a walker popped up behind her.

I scrambled backwards both at the lost, empty look in her eyes and at the undead thing behind her.

She didn't acknowledge it when the walker sunk his teeth into the side of her neck. She just cocked her head to the side, giving him better access. Slowly, her mouth formed a smile. But this smile wasn't like the one she used to give me when we would play tag in her backyard, or have Nerf gun fights in my room. This smile was deformed. Blood spilled bright red between her white teeth, dripping down the side of her mouth.

I had woken up screaming.

I shivered and started paying attention to what was going on around me. A tool kit was laid out on the hood of a car by the RV.

Rick started talking as more people walked up. "Everybody takes a weapon."

Andrea, of course, started arguing. "These aren't the kind of weapons we need. What about the guns?"

Lori stepped forward to pick out her weapon.

I understood that Andrea thought guns would be a more effective weapon against walkers (more effective at putting our asses in danger) but she didn't know how to use one, I didn't know how to use one, and neither did a lot of the other campers. Kaiya had known how, but she was the one we were looking for. I frowned.

"Haven't we already been over that?" Shane asked. "Daryl, Rick, and I are carrying. We don't need people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles."

"Its not the trees I'm worried about," Andrea grumbled as I moved forward and picked up a hatchet.

"Say somebody fires at the wrong time," Shane continued. "Herd happens to be passin' by. See, then its game over for all of us. So you need to get over it."

Andrea made a disgruntled face, but otherwise kept quiet.

In the awkward silence, Daryl began to speak, laying out plans for the search. "The idea is to take the creek up 'bout five miles. Then we'll turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are, she'll be by the creek. Its her only landmark."

Rick nodded. "Stay quiet, stay sharp. Keep distance between you, but always stay within sight of each other."

We nodded.

"Everybody assemble your packs," Shane called, taking a gulp from a water bottle.

I went over to the front of the RV and began packing it. I heard Dale, Carl, Rick, and Lori talking at the door of the RV.

"You keep on those repairs, we gotta get this RV ready to move," Rick instructed.

Dale nodded. "I don't want to stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there. Bring Kaiya back."

"You're watching Sophia while we're gone, right?" Rick asked. Dale nodded again. "Keep an eye on Carl, too?"

Dale started to nod, but Carl interrupted. "I'm going with you. You need people, right? To cover as much ground as possible?"

Rick let out a long sigh and looked over at Lori.

She shrugged. "Its your call. I cant always be the bad guy."

Rick seemed to think about it for a moment.

"Well, he has all you to look after him, I'd say he's in good hands," Dale said.

"Well okay," Rick relented hesitantly. "But always within our sight, no exceptions."

Carl nodded, beaming, and as he and his parents walked away, Dale gave him a small wink.

I shook my head and grinned. If only Kaiya were here.

"Lets move out!" Shane called.


	42. The Hunter, The Cop, and The Tent

RICK'S POV:

I supposed it was no big secret that I felt partially responsible for Kaiya's disappearance. Maybe if I hadn't hesitated when I was coming out from under that car… maybe if I had run just a little faster… I could've saved her. But I was too slow.

I had never noticed before just how many people the sixteen year old girl affected people. Andrea looked at her as sort of an honorary sister ever since the Amy incident and even a little before that. Both of the kids were in bits with her absence. They loved her.

Daryl and Glenn's care for her had been obvious. Glenn had been with the girl for her whole life from what I knew. Of course it would affect him for her to be lost out here with the world the way it was now.

As with Daryl, yes, I had known she meant something to him. But I hadn't noticed just how deep their relationship went. They had always hung around each other, subconsciously centering their movements around the other's. They seemed to have an effortless relationship, upholding the bonds of friendship without having to put up with drama (surprising for a teenage girl).

But I supposed if I thought back on it, I had noticed a small glimmer Kaiya had gotten in her eye when she watched Daryl around camp. Daryl watched her protectively, but I had never thought much of it; he just didn't want to lose another camper. But the truth was, he didn't want to lose the one person other than his brother that cared about him.

But he didn't know we all cared about him in our own ways. Carl practically idolized him, having asked me several times if he could have a crossbow of his own. Everyone in this group had a place, and everyone would be affected at the loss of one.

This was proven true with the reactions of every camper to Kaiya's status of whereabouts. The foul-mouthed, gun-slinging teen had won over just about everyone. We all loved her in our own way, and every one of us wanted her back.

My musings were cut short when Daryl held a hand up to stop us from walking forward through more underbrush. He pointed up ahead around the tree in front of us to a yellow tent standing in the middle of a circle of trees.

"She could be in there," Shane said quietly behind me.

"There could be a bunch of things in there," Daryl said. He seemed unwilling to believe that we would find her until we actually did. Probably trying not to get his hopes up.

Daryl moved forward cautiously, crossbow raised. He pulled his hunting knife out and signaled for the rest of us to stay back as he searched around. He got a little closer and tried to peer through the mesh of the tent flap. When he couldn't see through that, he slunk around to the side, and tried to see through the corner, but that was no good either. He looked back at us and shrugged, then went back over to the tent flap, sending me a nod.

"Glenn," I called quietly.

The young Asian boy rushed forward.

I motioned for him to follow me as I moved a little bit closer to Daryl and the tent. "Call out, softly," I instructed in a whisper. "If she's in there, your's is the first voice she should hear."

Glenn gave a short, nervous nod. "Kaiya?" he called quietly. "Kaiya, you in there? Kaiya, its me. Glenn." He was getting more and more nervous as he called out and she didn't answer. "Kaiya? I'm here. Its Glenn."

After another period of no answering, I moved forward to stand in front of the tent beside Daryl.

Daryl started to unzip the tent slowly, biting his lip nervously and squeezing his knife till his knuckles turned white. He had rested his crossbow on the ground nearby. When it was open enough for him to fit through, he grabbed the edge and pulled it slowly back, gazing around inside.

The smell of death leaked out of the tent, filling the air around us. I gagged and Daryl coughed, holding the back of his hand to his mouth. But he slowly entered the tent.

When he had disappeared inside, Glenn called, "Daryl? Daryl, she in there?" This search was definitely taking its toll on the boy.

Daryl exited the tent, no longer crouching and slinking stealthily along the ground. "It aint her," he said with a frown.

Glenn sighed and looked down at his feet, trying to hide his pained expression.

"What's in there?" Andrea asked with a defeated sigh.

"Some guy," Daryl said as if it didn't really matter if it wasn't her. "Did what Jenner said. Opted out. Aint that what he called it?"

A few people looked away from the tent awkwardly.

Then the bells rang.

* * *

><p><strong>Review! :) I do love them so. <strong>


	43. Abandonment Issues

DARYL'S POV:

The ringing of bells in the distance made me stop talking about the dead guy in the tent. All of us started running in one set direction, none of us actually sure if this was the right direction or if we should even be following the noise.

"If we can hear those bells, maybe Kaiya can, too," Carol offered, running alongside Glenn.

"Someone's ringing those bells. Maybe calling others," Glenn said, looking around at us.

"Or signaling that they found her," Andrea supplied.

"She could be ringing them herself," Rick said.

That small comment made me lose my grip on that shield I had assembled around myself. I had been trying not to be too overeager when looking for her, or I knew I would just get heartbroken. But I forgot about that when Rick said that. Maybe I had finally had enough of pretending I didn't want to find her more than anyone else, or maybe because Rick was such an authority figure that I took his word for it.

But I broke out into a sprint, dashing off in the direction of the bells. As I ran, I let every memory of Kaiya come flooding back to me, filling my mind as my feet flew over the dirt beneath me. Her face engulfed every thought I formed, until the trees around me disappeared and I was standing on the edge of another clearing. Only this time, there was a small white church in the middle, with headstones littering the yard.

We all stopped, panting and out of breath. "No, that cant be it," Shane said, shaking his head and breathing heavily. "Its got no steeple. No bells."

But Rick and I weren't having that. We ran forward, across the yard, everyone else following.

I made it up to the big red double doors of the church first. Rick signaled for everyone to be quiet as he and I pushed the doors apart, revealing three walkers sitting in the pews, facing the altar.

Kaiya was nowhere in sight. I felt my anger flare.

The three walkers turned to look at us. Rick and Shane moved forward, getting ready to attack.

I reached behind me and snatched short round's hatchet away, thrusting my crossbow into his hands as I ran up the side of the pews, zeroing in on the old lady in the white dress. At least I think she was old…

Her attention was focused on Shane who was dealing with another walker, so I was in the clear to sneak up behind her without her noticing. When I got close enough, I made a few kissy noises. She turned around and I sliced straight through her face, cutting until I was sure she wouldn't get back up.

Someone screamed, "Kaiya!" as I moved toward the front of the church and I thought it might've been Glenn.

I stared up at the statue of Jesus on the cross. "Hey, JC, you takin' requests?" I spat, turning back toward the door.

The bells started ringing again.

I shoved past everyone and got outside, running around the corner of the church to see a speaker perched on the roof's edge. It was connected to a box on the church's wall. Glenn opened the box and pulled some wires, silencing the infernal contraption.

"Timer," I sighed, breathing heavily. "Its on a timer." I couldn't hide the sad disappointment in my voice that time.

After a pause, Carol said tearfully, "I'm gonna go back inside for a bit."

Glenn looked around, mad and sad at the same time.

Andrea sat down against the wall of the church, most likely contemplating her shitty luck with sisters.

I followed Carol and Lori into the church, standing guard near the doors as they prayed.

I didn't see the point in praying right now. It was pretty obvious God had abandoned us. Even so, I wasn't about to just trust God with Kaiya's safety. The only person I could afford to trust with that was myself, or it would never be seen through.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you guys so much for all the review, they really mean a lot! :) I like to see what you guys are thinking about the story. Please continue to review! Thank you! :D <strong>


	44. Tell Sophia

CARL'S POV:

I stood beside my mom against a tree outside the church. Shane and my dad were talking a few yards away in low voices.

I sighed and frowned at the ground.

"What is it?" mom asked, kneeling down to my height.

"I miss Kaiya," I said, glaring at the ground.

Mom rubbed my back and said, "I know, baby. We all do. But we're gonna find her, alright?"

I looked up at her then. "You really think we will?"

She gave me a small smile and threw a glance over at Daryl. "Absolutely."

Shane started walking over to us and mom stood up. "Y'all gotta follow the creek bed back. Daryl, you're in charge."

I noticed Daryl grimace. He wanted to keep looking for Kaiya, too. She was his friend like Sophia was my friend. So then she was his Sophia.

Shane continued, "Me and Rick're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so. Just to be thorough."

"You're splittin' us up? Ya sure?" Now Daryl was just looking for excuses to continue the search.

"Yeah," Shane said. "We'll catch up to you."

"I wanna stay too," I said, stepping toward my dad. "She's my friend."

I was surprised when even my mom agreed to letting me go with them. While dad and mom were arguing over who was going to take the pistol, I snuck over to Daryl.

"Psst," I called, tugging on the back of his shirt. "Daryl."

He turned, confused and looking around. Then he looked down and saw me. He narrowed his eyes at me. "Yeah?"

"Can you do me a favor?"

He looked around to make sure none of the other grownups were eavesdropping and then kneeled down in front of me, nodding to me so I would continue.

"Can you tell Sophia I'm looking for Kaiya? Can you tell her I'll bring her back?"

He hesitated for a moment, only blinking at me. Then he nodded. "Alright."

Before he stood up, I said, "I will, you know. I'll find her for you."

He gave me a little grin. "That right?"

I nodded importantly.

"Alright, little man," Daryl said, standing and ruffling my hair.

I flushed with pride. I admired the crossbow-wielding hillbilly everyone else seemed to avoid, I wanted to be strong and a hunter like him.

Daryl pulled a pistol out of the back of the waistband of his pants and held it out to my mom, silencing the argument. "I've got a spare. Take it." After she had taken it, Daryl walked away.

She watched him oddly, as if unsuspecting of the guy to be nice ever.

I smiled. People were starting to see that Daryl could care. Kaiya had been the one to show me that, though she didn't know it. I used to be terrified of both Dixon brothers. But one day, I was playing hide and seek at the quarry with Sophia and I had overheard Kaiya and Daryl talking about how their lives used to be. The conversation had been normal and not once did Daryl blow up or get angry. He joked and laughed. Actually laughed. Turns out the hillbilly could actually be a decent guy if you cared to give him the chance.

I walked off with Shane and my dad into the woods, ready to go and find Kaiya like I had promised Sophia and Daryl I would.

But before we reached the tree line, dad said he was going to go inside the church. I knew he would be praying and I knew better than to interrupt him. I sat on the church steps outside with Shane, staring off at the trees in the distance.

"Do you think we'll find her, Shane?" I asked, not looking over at him. I knew we would, but I wanted to hear what Shane had to say about all this.

He hesitated before answering, "I really hope so, bud."

I nodded. That was just the nice way of saying "even though I don't want it to be true, its not looking that way".

Dad came out of the doors then.

"You get what you needed?" Shane asked, standing.

"I guess we'll find out," dad responded, gesturing for us to follow him into the woods.

I kept between dad and Shane the whole time, keeping as quiet as possible.

Dad held his hand up, telling us to stop, then he pointed to the left where a deer was eating some of the leaves of the trees.

I smiled and before I knew it, my feet were carrying me forward.

Shane raised his gun, but dad laid a hand on it, lowering it and gesturing to where I was walking closer to the deer.

It came out from behind the trees and out into the open. There were a few feet of open space between the deer and myself. It was a beautiful light brown color, with short pale antlers, and big dark brown eyes.

I smiled and kept moving forward. When I got kind of close, it looked up, but I kept moving and it didn't run off like I had thought it would. I was so close. Just a little farther and I would be able to touch it.

I smiled wider. The deer didn't take its big eyes off me.

A gunshot rang out, echoing off the trees and hurting my ears a little bit. Mom had always been particularly picky about making sure I kept my ears clean because of a nasty ear infection I had gotten when I was younger. Ever since that, thy had been terribly sensitive.

Everything seemed to slow down at that moment. I saw the bullet travel straight through the deer and it was coming for me. But I didn't have time to move.

I only had time to think two thoughts. _I hope Sophia wont worry_ and _I'm sorry I didn't find her, Daryl_.

Then my vision went black around the edges, closing in until I couldn't see anymore. I was so caught up in my fading vision that I didn't notice the searing pain that splintered through my stomach, knocking me to the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope this was to your liking, now I'm off to eat some amazing soup :) Review! :D<strong>


	45. The Clap

DARYL'S POV:

We continued trudging through the woods, making our way back to the highway when we heard something off in the distance.

I didn't notice that Lori had stopped until I turned around and she was a little farther behind then the rest of us.

"You still worrying about it?" Andrea asked, eyeing the woman staring off into the woods.

"That was a gunshot," she said, gripping her backpack straps.

"We all heard it," I said, surveying the land around us, watching for walkers.

Lori turned to look at me. "Why one? Why just one gunshot?"

I shrugged, shaking my head. "Maybe they took down a walker."

"Please don't patronize me, you now Rick would risk a gunshot to put down one walker. Or Shane. They'd do it quietly."

Well you're the one that asked.

"Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol asked fretfully.

"There's nothin' we can do about it, anyway," I sighed, pacing around. "We cant run around these woods chasin' echoes."

"So what do we do?" Lori asked.

"Same as we been doin'. Beat the bush for Kaiya, and make our way back to the highway." I really wanted to keep looking for her, but these people needed me to take them back to the highway and I couldn't get much done with them hanging over my shoulder like a dead goose.

"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the RV," Andrea assured Lori.

We moved forward again.

Carol put a hand on Glenn's shoulder, stopping him for a minute. "I'm real sorry for what you're going through. I know she was like a sister to you."

Glenn nodded and mumbled a thanks, redness returning to rim his eyes.

"I know we're all hopin' and prayin' for her to find her way back safely. For what its worth."

"I'll tell ya what its worth," I said, moving toward them. "Not a damn thang. It's a waste of time, all this hopin' and prayin'. We're gonna locate that girl and she's gonna be just fine." I was telling it mainly to Glenn, so he would know that Kaiya would be alright.

"Am I the only one Zen around here?" I asked, turning around. "Good Lord."

I noticed Lori trying not to smile as I passed by her. We trekked on further.

"We'll loose the light 'fore too long," I said, spitting onto the ground and looking up at the sky. It was oddly similar to the way it looked in my dream just before Kaiya had run off… "I think we should go."

"Lets head back," Lori said, looking around.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Glenn asked in a small voice. I noticed he was getting a lot thinner and paler. I would have to force-feed him when we got back to the RV.

"Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow," Lori said, rephrasing Glenn's question to reassure him that we wouldn't fail.

I whistled and pointed in the direction we would be going to get back to the highway.

A while later, Lori asked, "How much farther?"

I looked around. "Not much. Maybe a hundred miles. As the crow flies."

"Too bad we're not crows," Andrea grumbled.

I hadn't noticed Andrea walk away from us, so it came as a shock even to me when I heard her scream. We ran in the direction of her voice. Her screams kind of reminded me of a jaguar.

We came within sight of Andrea, laying on the ground with a walker towering over her. Then a horse came trotting into sight, a young girl in the saddle, wielding a bat. The walker looked up just in time to take a bite out of the wood.

The girl on the horse circled back around and came to us. "Lori?" she asked, halting the horse. "Lori Grimes?"

Lori ran forward. "I'm Lori."

The girl looked over at her, putting the bat in a holder by the horse's head. "Rick sent me, you gotta come now."

"What?" she asked.

"There's been an accident," the girl replied in a southern twang. "Carl's been shot. He's still alive, but you gotta come now."

I observed the girl as Lori hesitated. She had short brown hair and was definitely from around here.

"Rick needs you, just come!" the girl said, pointing to the seat behind her on the horse.

Lori nodded and started to take her backpack off. She dropped it on the ground.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah!" I said as Lori started clambering up onto the horse. "We don't know this girl! Ya cant get on that horse!"

"Rick said you had others on the highway?" the girl asked, barking out directions at Glenn after he nodded. "Backtrack to Fairview road, two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox, the name's Greene." With this last piece of information, she snapped the reigns and the horse took off.

I sighed, aggravated. The walker laying on the ground started groaning and sat up. "Shut up!" I said, taking aim and firing as I walked away.

"Shot?" Dale asked, astounded. "What do you mean shot?"

"I don't know, Dale," Glenn panted, walking up onto the pavement of the highway. "All I know is this chick came in outta nowhere like Zorro on a horse and took Lori."

"You let her?" Dale asked, nodding to me.

I climbed over the metal railing and shoved Dale out of my way. "Climb down outta my asshole, man. Rick sent her. She knew Lori's name, and Carl's." I stormed over to Merle's bike, annoyed with the day's events.

About an hour later, the sky was darkening, Sophia was asleep inside the RV, and Glenn, Andrea, Dale, Carol, and I were standing in a circle talking about the Greene farm.

"I wont do it," Carol said. "I cant just leave with what that girl did for me."

"Carol," Dale said exasperatedly.

Even Glenn seemed to want to go to the farm. We could still search from there and then we'd have secure shelter.

"The group is split. We're scattered and weak."

"What if she comes back? And we're not here?" She looked around at all the unsure faces. "It could happen."

"If Kaiya found her way back and we were gone… that would be awful," Andrea said.

"Okay," I said, nodding. "We gotta plan for this. I say tomorrow morning's soon enough to pull up stakes. It'll give us a chance to rig a big sign." I looked over at Carol. This was more an activity to keep her busy and not fretting over Kaiya so I wouldn't have my hands full with even more depressed campers while I searched.

"We'll leave her some supplies. I'll hold here tonight and stay with the RV." Any chance I could get to stay and search for her, I would gladly take.

"If the RV is staying, I am, too," Dale said.

"I'm in," Andrea said.

"Well, I think it's pretty obvious that I need to stay, too," Glenn started to argue.

"No, not you, Glenn," Dale objected.

I agreed. The kid hadn't slept good in a while and he hadn't eaten. He would be no good out here in the condition he was in.

"You're going. Take Carol's Cherokee."

"Me?" he asked, pouting. "Why is it always me?"

Dale calmed him down. "You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people, and see what's going on. But most important, you have to get T-dog there. This is not an option. That cut has gone from bad to worse. He has a very serious blood infection."

I glanced over my shoulder at Merle's bike and then walked over to it as Dale continued talking about needing to see whether they had any antibiotics. I grabbed a white rag off of the seat and glared briefly at Dale before opening the saddlebag and pulling out a large freezer bag full of pill bottles.

I threw the rag at Dale's chest. "Keep yer oily rags off my brother's motorcycle." I walked to the nearest car and set the bag down on it. "Why'd ya wait till now to say anything?" I asked, digging through the bag. "I've got my brother's stash. Crystal… X. Don't need that." I pulled out a bottle and looked at the label, tossing it over to Glenn. "Got some kickass pain killers." I turned back to the bag and found just what I needed and threw it to Dale. "Its not the generic stuff, neither. That's first class. Merle got the clap on occasion."

I walked away, leaving them to brood with that. I was half-expecting to hear Kaiya laugh at this statement, but I frowned as I walked away when I realized I may never hear her laugh ever again.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for all the reviews! Y'all are really keeping me on this :) Hope you like it. <strong>


	46. Itchy Ass

DARYL'S POV:

I was laying in the RV, trying to sleep when I heard Sophia crying. I picked my head up and looked over at her. Carol was asleep, her arms around her, but Sophia was wide awake, crying and looking out the window. Maybe she missed Kaiya as much as I did.

I looked up and, in my upside-down vision saw Andrea sitting at the table trying to put my gun clip back together. I sat up and thought. I wasn't going to get any sleep with the little girl's tears and Andrea's metal parts clicking. So I stood up and grabbed my crossbow from the seat across from Andrea.

"I'm gonna need my clip now," I said, looking down at Andrea's hands.

She handed it over.

"I'mma walk the road. Look Kaiya." I glanced over at Sophia. She looked up and trailed a finger under her eye, trying to wipe away her tears. I nodded to her then exited the RV, shining a flashlight around at the cars.

Andrea stepped out of the RV after me and closed the door. "I'm coming, too," she said.

I looked up at Dale on top of the RV and said, "I'mma go for a walk. Shine some light into the forest. If she's out there, give her somethin' to look at."

"Do you think that's a good idea right now?" Dale asked skeptically.

Andrea glared up at him.

I made an "awkward" face as she walked past me and sent another glance up to Dale before turning and following her.

After a few quiet minutes of wandering through the woods, Andrea asked, "You really think we're gonna find Kaiya?"

I glanced sharply at her then shined the flashlight on her face. She was staring at the ground with an unsure expression.

I scoffed. "Ya got that look on yer face, same as everybody else." I pointed the light back into the woods. "The hell's wrong with you people? We just started lookin'." It was disappointing that they were all so ready to abandon the search for Kaiya so soon. I would keep searching till I found her, no matter how long it took.

"Well, do you?" she asked again.

"It aint the mountains of Tibet, its Georgia," I scoffed. "She could be holed off in a farm house somewhere. People get lost, they survive. It happens all the time."

"She's only sixteen," she defended.

"Hell, I's younger than her when I got lost. Nine days in the woods eatin' berries, wipin' my ass with poison oak," come to think of it, I was probably even younger than Sophia when that happened.

"They found you?" Andrea asked.

"Nah, my old man was off on a bender with some waitress. Merle was in another sent in Juvy. They didn't even know I was gone. I made my way back, though. Went straight into the kitchen and made myself a sandwich. I was no worse for wear. 'cept my ass itched somethin' awful."

She snorted out a laugh. I turned to look at her.

"Sorry," she said around another laugh. "I'm sorry, that is a terrible story."

She laughed some more and I gave one humorless chuckle. I seemed to have lost the ability to laugh along with losing Kaiya.

"The only difference is, Kaiya's got people lookin' for her," I continued, looking deep into the trees. "I call that an advantage."

It was silent for a few more seconds before she asked quietly, "You really miss her… don't you?"

I looked down at her, shocked. For a moment, I thought I was going to deny it. But I didn't see the point in it anymore. I sighed and nodded.

"I keep thinkin' she's still right there by me like she always was. I keep expectin' her to come out with some crack any time someone does somethin' stupid, or to come and give me that big smile she gives me when she wants me to do somethin'."

I looked down at Andrea, but she was looking at me like she was trying to figure me out. I cleared my throat and looked back ahead. "Let's keep goin'."

We walked for a while longer, but still there was no sign of Kaiya.

A branch snapped off to my right. I turned and raised my crossbow and the flashlight. But I didn't see anything there. I knew better than to think that meant that there wasn't anything there.

I followed the noise, glancing back to make sure Andrea hadn't fallen behind. We came to another tent, but this one was tan and the flap had been raised and rested atop two sticks stuck in the ground. The tree above us rustled.

We moved forward slowly and cautiously, both ready to run if something we couldn't handle popped out.

The tree rustled again and I looked up, pointing the flashlight into the leaves. "What the hell?" I asked, eyeing the walker hanging by its neck from one of the tree branches.

He sounded like he was trying to breathe and he was moving his arms in our direction like he was trying to reach for us. All that was left of his legs were bloody bone.

I moved closer to the tree, spotting a piece of paper stuck to it. I leaned forward and shined the light on it, then read out loud, "Got bit, fever hit, world gone to shit, might as well quit."

I looked up at the struggling walker. "Dumbass didn't know enough to shoot himself in the head. Turned himself into a big, swingin' piece of bait. Look at that mess."

Andrea looked down. It looked like she was going to be sick. Why did people get like this over walkers? I knew if Kaiya were here, she would've laughed at the poem and the dead guy swinging from the branch.

"Ya alright?" I asked.

She bent over and coughed, shaking her head no. "Trying not to puke."

"Go ahead if ya gotta," I said, still gazing up at the dumb dead bastard.

"No, I'm fine, lets just… talk about something else for a minute. How'd you learn to shoot?"

"Gotta eat," I said. "That's one thing these walkers and us have in common. Guess this is the closest he's been to food since he turned," I said, gesturing to the wildly flailing walker. "Look at him. Hangin' up there like a big piñata." I pointed to his legs. "The other geeks came and ate all the flesh off his legs."

Andrea gave a gurgle and I turned to see her spitting out vomit. "I thought we were changing the subject," she whined, holding the back of her hand to her mouth.

"That was payback," I said. "For laughin' about my itchy ass. Let's head back." I started to walk back, but she stopped me.

"Aren't you gonna-" she gestured up to the swinging walker.

I looked up. "Nah. He aint hurtin' nobody. He aint wastin' no air either. He made his choice. Opted out. Let him hang."

She started to walk toward him.

I slowly walked over towards her. "Ya wanna live now? Or not?" I asked.

She looked over at me, startled.

"Its just a question."

She looked back up at the walker. "An answer for an arrow," she replied. "Fair?"

I thought about it for a minute then nodded.

She looked down with tears beginning to form in her eyes. "I don't know if I wanna live. Or if I have to or… if its just a habit."

"That's not much of an answer," I grumbled, loading up my crossbow. I aimed it up at the walker's head and shot. "Waste of an arrow."

We started back through the woods. About halfway back, I looked over and she was searching my face.

"What?" I asked uncomfortably, looking off in the distance.

"She knew," she said softly.

"Huh?" I asked, turning to face her.

She stopped walking. "Kaiya always knew you were a good guy, you know? She always tried to tell us, discretely, but she still tried. We never listened. I cant believe it. She was right."

I was almost completely lost.

"Ya tell anyone and I'll leave ya like our poet buddy back there," I said gruffly.

She chuckled and nodded, continuing to walk. But I couldn't stand not asking.

"So she-uh… she talked about me to ya?"

She nodded, a small smile beginning to form. "We didn't really like that she had been hanging out with you so much, but she always told us that you weren't bad. None of us believed her. Sorry about that," she said remorsefully.

I shook my head, dispelling her apology.

"Hey, Daryl?" she asked.

She had fallen behind me, so I turned around and was saying, "Yeah?" when her lips crashed down onto mine. It was confusing. One minute she's talking to me about the missing girl (the one I love, though no one knows it) and the next she's trying to kiss me! Crazy girls.

I pushed her shoulders back, pulling her face away from mine. "The fuck are ya doin'?" I asked, glaring at her.

"Kissing you, what does it look like?" she asked sarcastically.

"Well stop it!" I said, moving backwards a few steps.

"Do you love her, Daryl?"

"What?" I asked, my head snapping up so I could glare at her.

"I think you do."

"Ya don't know what the hell yer talkin' about," I growled, turning away from her.

She grabbed my arm and pulled me around.

"What?" I asked loudly.

She jumped a little. "Answer my question."

I watched her for a minute through narrowed eyes. "Why should I? Ya made me pay an arrow for an answer to my question. What're ya gonna pay me for this answer?" I actually meant that rhetorically so she would stop bugging me about it.

"I don't even have to. Because I know you do. You love her and its obvious to anybody who watches closely enough."

I felt my face heat up. "Shut the hell up!" I said, pointing a finger at her.

She shook her head. "I can see it when you look at her. Even back at the quarry, you were completely in love with her. But she's a bit young, huh?" she didn't say it in a mean way, just musing over the facts.

"Fine," I spat. "So what if I love her? I fuckin' love a sixteen year old girl, I'm a pervert, lock me up! Its not bad enough the only thing that's ever gone right in my fucked up little world just disappeared without a fuckin' trace, now I gotta be hounded by her crazy overprotective suicidal surrogate sister!"

She didn't flinch or get mad at the words I was yelling at her. "I knew it," she actually smiled. God chicks are confusing. "I only kissed you so I could know for sure." She seemed almost excited.

"Ya know there are other fuckin' ways to know for sure?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at her.

She shrugged. "What fun would that have been?"

Maybe she really had lost her marbles back at the CDC.

"Crazy bitch," I muttered, beginning to stalk away from her.

That didn't deter her. She kept right up with me, practically skipping alongside me. And the entire time, she fired questions at me. None of which I answered. Its not like I could've answered even if I had wanted to; she left no pause between them.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. Women.


	47. Glenn Prays

GLENN'S POV:

I heard T-dog's grunts of pain and stood in the doorway, watching as Patricia sowed his arm up. Maggie was holding his hand down so he wouldn't move so much.

Patricia took a glance at one of the pill bottles Daryl had given us. "Merle Dixon," she read. "That your friend with the antibiotics?"

I took a deep breath. "No ma'am, Merle's no longer with us. Daryl gave us those. His brother."

"Not sure I'd call him a friend," T-dog said, trying to keep his voice down around his pain.

"He is today. This stuff just saved your life," Patricia said, pulling the thread through again. "You know what Merle was taking it for?" she asked, glancing up at me.

"Clap," I said immediately. When Maggie looked up at me, I knew I had said the wrong thing. "Uhh… Venereal disease," I corrected. I sighed. If only Kaiya had been here to see this. I would have gladly taken any jibes I would've earned if it meant she was here to deal them out. "That's what Daryl said," I mumbled.

"I'd say Merle Dixon's clap was the best thing that ever happened to you," Patricia said to T-dog.

T-dog grunted again and looked up at her. "Look, I'm really trying not to think about that."

I stepped around T-dog and Patricia and made my way outside to the front porch. I sat down in one of the rocking chairs and stared out at the darkened landscape.

Where could she be? Was she alright? I supposed it was time I started asking myself more realistic questions. Was she even alive? I really hoped she was.

I figured it was time to do something I hadn't yet tried. I closed my eyes and bent my head, hoping God was still there to listen.

"You prayin'?" a female voice asked.

I looked up. Maggie was leaning against the railing of the porch. But the bottom of my vision was blurry. I rubbed at my eyes and sighed, dropping my hand. "Why do you sneak up on people so much?" I asked, stalling. I looked up at the moon. How could it still shine so bright when everything around us was falling to pieces?

"You're easy to sneak up on," she said, sitting on the railings and pulling her legs up.

"I was praying," I said, finally looking back over at her. "I was trying to."

"You religious? You pray a lot?" she asked, picking at the strings hanging loose from her frayed jeans.

"Actually, uh… this is my first try."

"Ever?" she asked.

I nodded, looking back out at the fields.

"Wow, sorry," she said, looking down. "I didn't mean to ruin your first time."

I sighed. "God probably got the gist."

_I just want my sister back._

"Prayin' for what?" she asked. I looked up, but she was still looking at her jeans.

"Friends," I said, not sure if I wanted to talk about Kaiya to anyone yet. "Looks like they could all use a little help right now." I paused and took a deep breath. "You think… Do you think God exists?" I asked, looking up to gauge her reaction.

I wasn't sure anymore. I used to not really think much about religion and the like, but now, it was getting harder and harder for me to see that there was a God. All of this walker business hits, I lost my dad, Carl got shot, and now my sister is lost without a trace.

"I always took it on faith," she answered evenly. "Lately I've wondered. With everything that's happened, there must've been a lot of prayin' goin' on and it seems quite a few went unanswered."

I nodded. "Thanks. This is really helping."

"Sorry," she said, smirking at her lap. "Go ahead."

I started to let my head drop, but then I realized she was still there. "You gonna watch?"

She started to get down from her seat and she walked in front of me, bending down to retrieve my empty glass. "I'll get you a refill instead." She was walking back inside the house, but she stopped and turned back toward me.

"I know its not business, and feel free to believe in God. But the thing is… You gotta make it okay somehow. No matter what happens."

I thought about that and nodded at her. I wanted to do something to help find Kaiya, but nobody would let me. They all thought I was getting too weak. And maybe I was. I was neglecting any kind of nutrition and worrying myself sick. I would have to build up my strength so I could go out and search for Kaiya again.

Maggie turned and went back inside and I tried once again to pray.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you liked it! Review! :) <strong>


	48. Sleep

KAIYA'S POV:

I wandered around aimlessly, feeling my consciousness and sanity slip away with each passing hour. Every tree looked the same and every step I took felt like a marathon. I needed sleep and I needed it soon.

I stumbled around in a circle, thinking about what the rest of camp might be doing. If they were worried about me. Or if they had already passed me off as dead. What about Glenn? Was he alright? And Daryl? Did he even notice I was gone?

By blind luck, I stumbled into a barded wire fence and, again by pure chance, back out unscathed. Some of my rationalization must have stuck with me, because I was able to come to the conclusion that this fence was bordering something.

I hopped the fence, wobbling slightly when I landed on the other side. I was lightheaded, hungry, tired, emotional, and probably a little coocoo. I stumbled along through the waist-high grass until an old brick house came into view.

I felt around in my pants and in the waistband, I felt the gun Daryl had given me. I didn't know if there were any walkers in here and if there were, I didn't know how many, or even if I would be able to see straight enough to shoot one. I opened the chamber and checked the clip. Only three more bullets. So much for "Should be loaded."

I gripped the gun tightly in my right hand and, in my light-headed haze, I made my way, somehow silently, into the house. I peeked around the corners, checking for any signs of walkers. There were none. I searched every room in the house before I set up a barricade of furniture against the three windows on the first floor and propping a chair up under the handle of the door.

I was in desperate need of a bath, but I knew that would have to wait until I made it back to the group. I found some bed sheets and pillows in one of the upstairs cupboards and set up a pallet in the bottom of the pantry in the kitchen.

When I was looking around, I found a spiral bound notebook and a few pens. I took them down to the kitchen with me. You gotta have something to occupy your mind sometimes, right? I sat down on the floor and began writing.

At the top, I put: _To whom it may concern. Or to anyone who is still alive enough to read. _

I skipped down to the lines and wrote, _I'm not sure what day it is, or I would put the date on this. My name is Kaiya Caston. I'm a survivor of the apocalypse, just like whoever is reading this. Now that I think about it, I'm not completely sure who I think is going to read this. I've got to have something to hold my attention or I may go insane. I was traveling with a group before. I really miss the group. _

I skipped a line and wrote a little about every camper, underlining their name.

_Glenn__. We've been best friends since birth, us two. I really hope his nightmares haven't been getting worse. When we were kids, he had them really bad and I used to have to calm him down in the middle of the night. I hope he's doing alright without me. _

_The kids, __Sophia__ and __Carl__. I got separated from the group saving Sophia from two walkers. At least if I got lost it was doing something good and saving a little kid. Carl is the son of a police officer and he's a very handsome young boy, always striving for the approval of someone. _

_Rick Grimes.__ He's Carl's father. Its because of him that Glenn made it back out of Atlanta after a supply run about a month ago. I owe him just about everything. He also helped save me from a group of Mexicans that kidnapped me, but ran a nursing home._

_T-dog.__ I don't really talk to him much, but he helped get me out, too. He's pretty nice from what little I know about him. _

_Lori Grimes. __Wife to Rick and mother to Carl. She's very overprotective of her son and her family as a whole. _

_Dale Horvath. __An old guy that owns the RV we travel in. His wife died of cancer before all this shit hit the fan. He's a very friendly old man, but he has a tendency to stick his nose where it doesn't belong. _

_Carol Peletier. __Sophia's mom. Her abusive dickhead of a husband died in a walker invasion that happened back at our camp by a quarry outside Atlanta. She's a very sweet woman. _

_Andrea. __I was very close with her younger sister Amy before she was turned in the same invasion that took Ed Peletier. She's been rather broken down ever since that incident and sometimes she seems like she's just going through the motions and doesn't know what to do anymore. _

_Amy.__ She might be dead, but she'll always be like a sister to me. She was my friend. Her favorite color was green. She loved to watch the stars. She loved the smell of cinnamon because it reminded her of her grandma's house in Christmas time. Rest in Peace. _

_Daryl Dixon.__ What can I say? I think he might be the person I miss the most. Maybe even more than Glenn. He's a rowdy hillbilly with a mean temper and quite the arsenal of insults. But I think I might love him. _

_But see, there's this problem. I'm sixteen and he's… well, I don't even know how old he is, but it sure as hell isn't sixteen. _

_We got drunk one night and I'm not sure what exactly happened, but when I voice the fear that maybe we had done something, he kind of blew up. I hadn't wanted it to be true, but that didn't make his words hurt any less. _

_He told me, "You think I'd sleep with you? Even if I was drunk?" _

_I knew he was just angry and confused, but his words cut deep. I had wanted him badly, dreaming almost every night of his deep blue eyes, running my hands through his sandy brown hair, and listening to him say my name. But when he told me off, I realized he didn't want me. _

_So I was mad at him. I was still mad at him and wasn't talking to him when I got lost. I bet he doesn't even care that I'm gone. _

_Part of me wants to believe that I know him better than that, that he is actually worried about me. But the other part of me is saying that I was just some stupid little girl to him. _

_So yeah, I think I love him. At least I'm pretty sure I do… I've never felt this way about anyone. I don't really have any experience with the L-word. I've got nothing to compare it to. _

_Sure I've dated, but it almost always only lasted for a few days. Very rarely two weeks. But with Daryl, I want this to last longer than that. I want him to hold me forever. _

_I want to be with him now, but I know he doesn't feel like that. I want him to hold me like he did the night Amy died and tell me its all going to be alright just like he did that night. I want to make him laugh again. I want to see his blue eyes twinkling mischievously as he plans to do something evil to me (such as throw me into a lake, that buttface.) _

_I guess I'll just have to wait and keep searching for them. _

I skipped to the very bottom and wrote: _Kaiya Caston. Age 16, but I'll be turning 17 in a few days, I think. In love and lost. Hoping to be found, but knowing my luck isn't good enough for that. Lets hope I don't die. Goodbye. _

After the slightly depressed note, I searched the kitchen, finding only a few cans of tuna.

"Oh," I whined quietly. "I hate tuna." I swallowed the urge to vomit at the smell, but when I scarfed down one can, I figured I was hungry enough to endure a second. I tossed the empty cans into the black plastic trash can and then went into the pantry, closing the door behind me and snuggling down into the bedding.

Compared to my big fluffy bed and comforter back at home, this was terribly uncomfortable, but I was so exhausted this cramped little space filled with stuffing was heaven.

I sighed and placed Merle's gun on the ground beside me. Close enough that I could reach it if I needed to get to it quick, not so close that I would roll over it in my sleep and shoot myself by accident.

I pulled the sheets up around me, thinking one last time about the camp before drifting off to sleep.

Was it just my subconscious, or was I really hearing the sound of the back door screeching open against the linoleum accompanied by a low moan and shuffling feet? I assumed it was my imagination just because I was too tired to do anything even if it was real and kept my eyes closed, thinking one thing before the blackness came.

_I'm sorry, Daryl._

* * *

><p><strong>Finally some news on Kaiya, huh? :) Review! <strong>


	49. Kaiya's Note

DARYL'S POV:

"We're about to be back at the highway, now if ya don't shut up about all this love shit, I'm gonna shoot ya," I warned Andrea, turning and pointing a finger at her.

She sobered up and we continued walking up to the highway.

We got onto the pavement and I shined my light on some of the cars, making sure no walkers had slipped inside and were planning on surprising us. I walked up to the RV just as Carol was getting in.

Dale was climbing down the ladder, giving me an expectant look.

I just looked back, then I shook my head with disappointment.

Carol had been sitting on top of the RV with Dale while Andrea and I had been searching. Sophia had finally fallen asleep. Carol laid back down with Sophia and fell asleep pretty quickly.

I laid back down in the walkway of the RV and fell asleep.

"Kaiya?" I whispered, slinking along through the old house. "Kaiya?"

"_Daryl_," a girl whispered. I would know that voice anywhere. It was her. But her voice was thin, floating around and fading away like a mist. It was eerie and sent a shiver skittering down my spine.

I walked quietly through the hallway, my crossbow up. The old floorboards creaked as my foot came down. I bit my lip nervously and looked down at the board, silently willing it to shut up.

I heard something get hit in another room to my left a few feet up the hall. I jumped over to the wall and pressed my back up against it, listening closely. No more sounds.

I took quiet steps along the wall, pausing when I reached the open door the noise had come from. I took a deep breath and gripped my crossbow tightly before spinning quickly around the corner and into the room.

I aimed the crossbow all around the room until I finally processed what was standing in front of me.

Kaiya. But she wasn't Kaiya. She had been bitten. She looked up at me slowly.

Her hair was stringy and matted with blood. Her skin was a pale gray with blood smeared in places. There was blood coming from her mouth and crusted over blood in a crescent shape over her left arm and the base of her neck. Her once beautiful eyes were now clouded over and red.

It seemed like she was smiling, but it was twisted and unnatural.

"_Daryl_," it was coming from her, but her mouth wasn't moving.

"NO!" I yelled.

My eyes flew open, revealing the ceiling of the RV. I was glad I hadn't actually woken up yelling like the last nightmare I had.

I sat up and grabbed my crossbow from the table. After a sigh, I walked outside. Everyone was already ready. We had written in white paint on the windshield of a yellow car, "_Kaiya stay here we will come everyday._" We also left a few bottle of water and some peanut butter (I knew she loved the stuff so I left it just for her) and some cans of fruit.

I packed up what little I had and threw it on the back of the bike then led the way to the Greene farm.

It didn't take long to find. It was a big farmhouse in the middle of a lot of yellowing fields. There was a large graying barn about a football field away, and the long dirt road must've stretched on for about a mile.

I got off the bike and saw that everybody inside the Greene's farmhouse had come outside to greet us.

"How is he?" Dale asked after a moment of silence.

"He'll pull through," Lori answered, nodding with a slight smile. "Thanks to Herschel and his people-"

"And Shane," Rick interrupted. "We'd have lost Carl if not for him."

Shane looked up and then back down.

Dale moved forward and gave Rick and big man hug. Carol and Sophia hugged Lori. I could tell Sophia was worried and wanted to see Carl, though. I stayed in the back, awkwardly holding on to my crossbow. God, I missed Kaiya.

"How'd it happen?" Dale asked, pulling out of the hug.

"Hunting accident," Rick explained with a small smile. "That's all, just a stupid accident."

Shane shifted around uncomfortably, though I think I'm the only one that noticed. Well, well, mister officer… what have you done now?

After Otis's funeral, I got ready to go out and search some more. From where we were now, there was a lot more land we hadn't been before that we could cover.

I walked around the side of the house, looking out over the landscape with my crossbow strap over my chest.

"Daryl," someone called. I looked over and Rick was walking toward me. "You okay on your own?"

"I'm better on my own. Don't worry, I'll be back 'fore dark," I barked, annoyed that he thought I couldn't handle this.

"Hey," he called out louder. I turned to him again. "We got a base. We can get this search properly organized now."

I took a few steps toward him. He was taking up my time that I could be using to search for Kaiya. "Ya gotta point, or are we just chattin'?"

"My point is that it lets you off the hook. You don't owe us anything."

No I don't. But I do owe something to that girl.

I turned around and stalked off. "My other plans fell through."

About an hour later, I was wandering through the woods, searching for anything useful. The trees stopped, giving way to a wide open space with an old-looking house in the middle.

I took my crossbow off and readied it, cautiously stalking up to the house. I walked up the front porch and kicked the front door in. A chair had been propped up against it, but it hadn't held very well.

I aimed around for a minute before walking in. This place looked creepily similar to the place I had been in my dream last night. I hoped this wouldn't turn out like the dream did. The back door at the end of the front hall hung open on its hinges letting the slight breeze come through the house.

I peered in the living room. Nothing.

I turned and looked in the room opposite. Zip.

I checked one of the other rooms by the back door. Nada.

I thought I heard some creaking, so I pulled myself out of the room, gazing suspiciously at the stairs. But then I saw another room across the hall I hadn't checked. Best to be thorough.

I entered the room, but there didn't seem to be anything there, either. This was the kitchen. I searched around with my crossbow up before looking down at a black plastic trash can by the back door.

There was an empty can of tuna sitting right on top. I picked it up. Only the juices were left. But Kaiya hated tuna. But she hadn't eaten in a while. If this was all she had, she would've eaten it.

I looked up and noticed a pantry door only slightly open. I slowly dropped the tuna can back into the trash and lifted my crossbow. I took a few very slow steps toward it and then reached out and threw it open quickly.

There were a few shelves with food on them, but they had all expired. In the bottom was a pillow and a few sheets. Only a child or someone as small as Kaiya could've fit there. If I looked closer, I could see a white sheet of paper tucked under the pillow. I bent down and pulled it out.

At the top, it said, "_To whom it may concern. Or to anyone who is still alive enough to read. _

I grinned a little. This was definitely Kaiya. If that sarcastic sense of humor during all this wasn't enough proof, her name at the bottom was.

_I'm not sure what day it is or I would put the date on this. My name is Kaiya Caston. I'm a survivor of the apocalypse just like whoever is reading this. Now that I think about it, I'm not completely sure who I think is going to read this. I've got to have something to hold my attention or I may go insane. I was traveling with a group before. I really miss the group. _

Under this, she had listed every single member of the group and underlined their name, leaving a brief description of their personality. I didn't read all of them. Only Glenn, Amy, and Daryl.

_Glenn__. We've been best friends since birth, us two. I really hope his nightmares haven't been getting worse. When we were kids, he had them really bad and I used to have to calm him down in the middle of the night. I hope he's doing alright without me. _

_Amy.__ She might be dead, but she'll always be like a sister to me. She was my friend. Her favorite color was green. She loved to watch the stars. She loved the smell of cinnamon because it reminded her of her grandma's house in Christmas time. Rest in Peace. _

I frowned when I remembered how torn up Kaiya had been the night Amy had died. I sighed when I saw just how much she had written about me. It was quite a bit.

_Daryl Dixon.__ What can I say? I think he might be the person I miss the most. Maybe even more than Glenn. He's a rowdy hillbilly with a mean temper and quite the arsenal of insults. But I think I might love him. _

_But see, there's this problem. I'm sixteen and he's… well, I don't even know how old he is, but it sure as hell isn't sixteen. _

_We got drunk one night and I'm not sure what exactly happened, but when I voice the fear that maybe we had done something, he kind of blew up. I hadn't wanted it to be true, but that didn't make his words hurt any less. _

_He told me, "You think I'd sleep with you? Even if I was drunk?" _

_I knew he was just angry and confused, but his words cut deep. I had wanted him badly, dreaming almost every night of his deep blue eyes, running my hands through his sandy brown hair, and listening to him say my name. But when he told me off, I realized he didn't want me. _

_So I was mad at him. I was still mad at him and wasn't talking to him when I got lost. I bet he doesn't even care that I'm gone. _

_Part of me wants to believe that I know him better than that, that he is actually worried about me. But the other part of me is saying that I was just some stupid little girl to him. _

_So yeah, I think I love him. At least I'm pretty sure I do… I've never felt this way about anyone. I don't really have any experience with the L-word. I've got nothing to compare it to. _

_Sure I've dated, but it almost always only lasted for a few days. Very rarely two weeks. But with Daryl, I want this to last longer than that. I want him to hold me forever. _

_I want to be with him now, but I know he doesn't feel like that. I want him to hold me like he did the night Amy died and tell me its all going to be alright just like he did that night. I want to make him laugh again. I want to see his blue eyes twinkling mischievously as he plans to do something evil to me (such as throw me into a lake, that buttface.) _

_I guess I'll just have to wait and keep searching for them. _

Under the last part, she put, _Kaiya Caston. Age 16, but I'll be turning 17 in a few days, I think. In love and lost. Hoping to be found, but knowing my luck isn't good enough for that. Lets hope I don't die. Goodbye. _

I folded the piece of paper and stuffed it into my back pocket.

Something silver caught my eye under the blanket. I picked it up. It was Merle's gun. I frowned. So now she was unarmed. Great.

* * *

><p><strong>Yay! I'm loving all the reviews! :) Remember, more reviews = more updates :) Hope y'all liked it <strong>


	50. Kaiya's Flower

GLENN'S POV:

After that walker down in the well, I had been re-motivated to start helping out. I wanted to get out and help search, but I knew I would just end up messing that up. So I would just stick to what I did best and hope Daryl knew what he was doing.

Lori had asked me to get something for her on my supply run, but I wasn't exactly sure what it was. All I knew was that she wanted me to keep quiet about it. This was sure to end up bad.

I was on my way into a small town, riding on a horse. This supply run was different though, Maggie was here, too. She was rather pretty. I caught myself trying to impress her more often lately.

"You know, normally, uh…" I started, once again trying to sound cool. "This is the kinda thing I do on my own. Solo." I chuckled. "Its sorta my thing, you know? I'm a loner."

I looked over at her, but she was just staring at the ground. She hadn't said a word for the entire trip.

"You alright?"

"I'm fine," she answered without looking at me.

"I saw the look on your face," I said as we trotted up to a pharmacy. "Back at the well. Never seen one killed up close before?" She didn't answer, but I already knew. "Guess its kind of a shock. You know, being out on the road, we've seen a lot. I guess we've gotten a little numb to it," I mumbled, thinking about all the walkers we had killed without a second thought.

"Whoa," Maggie said, halting her horse. "I guess so."

We tied the horses to a stop sign and walked up to the pharmacy. In the window was a piece of cardboard with something written in Sharpie. "_Take what you need and God bless_".

We walked in. Maggie seemed a little bit less cautious than I was. I was still too used to Atlanta where walkers popped up everywhere and at the most inconvenient times like it was protocol.

"I'll go see what antibiotics are left. What else is on the list?" Maggie asked, turning to me.

I handed her the piece of paper with everyone's request (minus Lori's) written down on it. "Why don't you get started?"

"What about you?" she asked, reading over the list.

"Um, I'm gonna look around and see what's worth grabbing. Just general stuff." I opened my backpack and began looking for Lori's thing.

I looked on the rack that said "Feminine Hygiene" like Lori told me to. They seemed to be out of virtually everything, but on the floor, I found it. It was a pregnancy test. My eyes widened and my breath came a little bit faster. Lori thought she was pregnant? She couldn't be pregnant in the middle of-

"What'cha got?" Maggie asked from behind me.

I dropped the small True Blue box into my backpack and picked up another box as a cover. "Uh, umm… Nothing, just," I stood up and faced her. "like I said, general stuff."

She took a look at the box in my hands. "Condoms?"

I sighed, cursing my terrible luck.

"You gotta a girlfriend I don't know about?" she asked.

"Me? No," I answered hastily.

"Then you're a pretty confident guy."

I shook my head. "No. No, no, no. I wasn't- I would never-"

"Somethin' wrong with me?"

Ugh! Why cant I ever do anything right?

"No! No, I-I-I would never have… sex…" I sighed and shook my head. "Uhh… I-I'm lost, I'm-"

She looked at me for a minute before saying, "I'll have sex with you."

"Really?" I asked disbelievingly.

All of my word-stumbling had gotten me laid.

We rode up the long driveway of the Greene farm on the horses. I couldn't help the large smile that would go away.

"Don't spoil it," she warned as we came inside the gate.

"So it was good?" I asked, smiling again.

She looked back at me. "It was a one time thing."

I grimaced. What was with her?

I tied up the horses and Lori came out of the house and walked up to me. "Did you find it?"

I pulled my backpack off and looked around inside it then pulled out the plastic-wrapped box and handed it to her.

She stuffed it in the back of her shirt and I left, still confused about Maggie's behavior, angry with myself because I had sex with a stranger in the middle of a pharmacy with walkers all around while my sister is missing, and miserable because on top of all that, I couldn't get rid of my nightmares.

DARYL'S POV:

I made my way out the back door.

So she loved me, huh? I couldn't help but feel a little glad that she did. But I had to remind myself that she was still lost.

I walked down the back steps. "Kaiya!" I called. I looked around, walking over to the side of the house then back. "Kaiya!"

As I walked I noticed something white blooming between two trees. I walked closer to get a better look. It was a Cherokee Rose. I smirked a little, remembering the story. I picked the flower carefully.

Maybe this would help Glenn feel a little better.

I made my way back to the farm, thinking about Kaiya. I found Glenn sitting in the RV. I had put the rose in an old glass bottle. I set it down on the table in front of him. I could tell he had been thinking about Kaiya; his eyes were red.

"A flower?" Glenn asked, somewhat surprised that I would have picked a flower.

But he didn't know that this flower was special. This was Kaiya's flower. "It's a Cherokee Rose," I explained, watching the petals. "The story is when American soldiers were movin' Indians off their land, on the Trail of Tears, the Cherokee mothers were grievin' and cryin' so much 'cause they were losin' their little ones along the way. Exposure, and disease, and starvation. A lot of 'em just… disappeared. So the elders said a prayer. They asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, give them strength. Hope. The next day, this rose started to grow right where the mothers' tears fell." I looked up then.

He looked surprised that I was being so nice to him and that I knew the story behind a damn flower, but I knew this was what Glenn needed. Something to uplift his spirits and give him strength and hope.

"I'm not fool enough to think there are any flowers bloomin' for my brother. But uh… I know this one bloomed for Kaiya."

Glenn started to smile.

I turned around and began to walk out. "Oh and Glenn?" I called over my shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"If you tell anyone about that I'll kill ya."

He paled a little bit.

I chuckled and walked out of the RV.

* * *

><p><strong>I feel a little weird having Daryl give Glenn the flower, but it made more sense in this fic than if he gave it to Carol. Anyway, I hope you guys liked it! :) <strong>


	51. Chupacabra

DARYL'S POV:

I had another nightmare about Kaiya that night. Only this time, it was just a replay of the fight we had at the CDC. The last time she was officially talking to me. It hurt bad enough the first time.

The next morning, I met with T-dog, Rick, Shane, and Andrea on the hood of Carol's Cherokee where Rick had spread out a map.

"Alright, everybody's getting new search grids today," he started. "If she made it as far the farm house Daryl found, she might've gone farther east than we've been so far."

Herschel's son stepped forward. I didn't know his name, but he kinda pissed me off for reasons I couldn't quite explain. "I'd like to help," he said.

I pulled on a shirt (one that actually had sleeves) over my gray tank top and watched the boy as he came closer.

"I know the area pretty well and stuff."

"Herschel's okay with this?" Rick asked skeptically.

"Yeah, yeah," he said a little too quickly. I had the sneaking suspicion he was lying, but whatever. It was his ass, not mine. "Uh, he said I should ask you."

Rick nodded. "Alright, thanks." Then he turned back to the map.

"And about what Daryl found," Shane said from his seat in the Cherokee. "I mean, anyone could've been holed up in that farmhouse."

"Anyone includes her, right?" Andrea said.

Shane seemed hell-bent on discontinuing the search. I was about ready to knock a few of his teeth in.

"Well whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yea high," I said, marking around Kaiya's height. Probably 5"3'-ish. "In case ya haven't noticed, she aint exactly the tallest teenager in the world."

"Good lead," Andrea said.

"Maybe we'll pick up her trail again," Rick said, nodding.

"No maybe about it," I grumbled. "I'm gonna borrow a horse. Head up to this ridge right here and get a bird's eye view of the whole grid. If she's down there I'll spot her."

"Good idea," T-dog said, grinning at me. "Maybe you'll see your Chupacabra up there, too."

"Chupacabra?" Rick asked.

I frowned. I know what I saw.

"What you never heard that?" Dale asked, setting the bag of guns down on the hood of the car next to me. "The first night in camp, Daryl tells us that the whole thing reminds him of the time when he went squirrel hunting and he saw a Chupacabra."

The boy snorted.

"What're ya brayin' at, jackass?"

"So you believe in a blood sucking dog?" Rick asked, trying not to smile.

"Ya believe in dead people walkin' around?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

The kid started to reach for a gun, but Rick stopped him. "Hey, hey. Ever fire one before?"

"Well if I'm going out, I want one," the kid said.

I pulled the strap of my crossbow over my head. "Yeah, and people in Hell want slurpies." I walked away and got a horse out of the stalls, riding into the woods up the trail I had mental marked on the map.

I heard something scampering up a tree and whipped my crossbow up, pulling the trigger. The arrow flew and pinned a squirrel to a tree. I rode the horse up right beside the tree and pulled the arrow out, looping the squirrel around my belt.

I rode the horse around through a few more trees before I came in sight of a steep drop into a creek.

"Whoa," I said softly to the horse. It slowed down a bit before stopping.

I looked down onto a log in the water. I thought I saw something green and orange sticking to one of the branches of the log, just out of the water.

I got off the horse and took my crossbow off and held it as I walked down the incline. I walked across the sand at the bottom and then through the shallow, murky water to the log.

I leaned down and pulled off a pale green string with what looked like different colored fruit loops on it. It was kind of wet, but it had been looped around the branch and held out of the water.

It was Kaiya's. I had seen her with it tied around her neck on more than one occasion. I had always wanted to ask what it was, but she seemed to cling to it so tightly, like it was some sort of a life line. Especially in times of crisis. She would wrap her hand around the stale cereal bits and squeeze as she chewed on her lip. I had also seen her hold it up to Glenn just before I gave her a ride on Merle's motorcycle.

I frowned and put the necklace over my wrist, wrapping it around twice to make it look like two identical bracelets.

"Kaiya!" I yelled, my voice echoing through the trees and off the rocks.

I looked around, but there was nothing anywhere, so I climbed back up to the horse and got on, riding back around the curve of the hill. I watched down the creek as I rode, keeping my horse at a very slow walk. The horse whinnied and started to back up when a few birds flew out of the trees behind us.

"Whoa," I said in a low voice, trying to calm the horse.

We moved forward again. I was looking around for Kaiya, so I was too distracted to notice the snake hiding under the cover of some fallen leaves. It picked its head up and hissed, causing the horse to rear back.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" I called, trying to calm it down, but it didn't listen.

It bucked me off, sending me with my crossbow strapped to my back rolling down the hill beside us. I grunted and watched as the land around me turned to a swirl of green and gray and blue. I was getting hit everywhere at once. My head, my side, my back, my legs, my chest. Until finally, I stopped rolling and slid down the last bit of slick watery rock. I fell onto a part of the rock that was covered with about an inch or so of water.

I groaned and rolled onto my back, biting my lip. "Son of a bitch!" I said, my breathing deep. I gripped at my side and looked down.

One of my arrows was sticking out of my flesh.

I grunted and leaned my head back, closing my eyes.

The place the arrow had been stuck through stung, burning as the water around me soaked up the blood spilling from my torso.

I dragged myself toward the sandy shore, holding my side as I worked my way slowly toward the shore. When I reached it, I took out my knife, thanking my lucky stars that I had worn sleeves today. I cut the sleeves off and tied them together to make a large tourniquet which I tied just above the arrow-puncture with the arrow still sticking out.

And it hurt like a bitch. Every time I touched it, it hurt all over again. Moving hurt worse than I remember it ever hurting in my life.

I looked up. The tumble I took had been a good 60 foot drop straight down a flat rock cliff face.

I stood up and grabbed a long stick to walk around with.

The large bushes a few yards away started to rustle. My head snapped up and I watched it nervously.

I had left my crossbow out in the water.

When the bush didn't move anymore, I waded back out, using the stick to feel around in the water for it. I felt it near the center of the water and leaned in to grab it, noting the red-ish tint the water was taking on.

When I had climbed back out of the water, I tried to make my way back up the hill. I pulled myself and had to keep reminding myself _This is for Kaiya._ I let out whimpers and pants and grunts and groans the whole way up.

I wanted nothing more than to lay down in that moment. I wanted to stop trying and give up. But I knew if I did that, Kaiya would've killed me.

The sun beat down into my eyes and I could've sworn I heard Kaiya's laugh. _Come on, old man. You aren't gonna give up that easy are you? You're tougher than this, Daryl! _She laughed again.

I nodded and tried again to haul myself upwards. The dirt was becoming more lose. I hoped it wouldn't give way. I let my stick drop and looked back up, grabbing onto a tree branch. I tried to pull myself up, but I fell a little bit backwards.

I looked back down. "Come on, ya done half already. Stop bein' such a pussy." I grunted and gave three deep breaths before trying to launch myself at a tree growing at an odd position due to the slope.

But the tree was too flimsy. I fell right back down to where I was two seconds ago. The dirt started to crumble away. I panicked, trying to hold onto anything in reach. But there was nothing there.

I fell back down, tumbling on my side. "Agh!" I yelled out, landing on my arrow side. But this time, I was out. I could barely open my eyes.

I managed to get them open far enough for the blurriness to go away and I could make out Merle's face. He stared down at me, jaw slack like always.

"Why don't'cha pull that arrow out, dummy?" he asked. It was good to hear his voice, even if I was hallucinating. "Ya could bind ya wound better."

I started to smirk. It had been a while since I had even thought about Merle. I could feel the blood running down the side of my face. It was coming from a cut in my forehead. I could feel the sting.

"Merle," I murmured.

He grinned. "What's goin' on here? Ya takin' a siesta or somethin'?"

"Shitty day, bro."

"Like me to get'cha a pillow?" he asked, mocking me with a smirk. "Maybe rub ya feet?"

"Screw you," I said around another grin.

"Nuh uh," he said. "You're the one's screwed from the look of it. All them years I spent tryin' to make a man of ya. This is what I get? Look atchya, lyin' in the dirt like a used rubber. You're gonna die out here lil' brother. And for what?"

"Girl," I whispered, trying to ignore the pain in my side. "We lost the girl. Kaiya."

"Kaiya?" he asked, confused. "Oh, old baby doll! Y'all lost her? Well what in the hell ya doin' lookin' for her? Ya got a thing for teenage girls now?"

"Shut up," I said, my voice coming out in a whisper.

"'Cause I noticed ya aint out lookin' for ol' Merle no more."

"We tried like hell to find ya, bro. Even Kaiya did."

"Like hell y'all did. Ya split, man. Let out first chance ya got."

"No, you let out," I said. "All ya had to do was wait. We went back for ya. Rick, Kaiya, and I." I nodded. "We did right by ya."

"This the same Rick that cuffed me to the roof in the first place?" he asked, a bit agitated. "Forced me to cut off my own hand? That's who yer talkin' 'bout?"

I looked down. Merle had his hand. So this was a hallucination. My vision went a little blurry, Merle's face blending in with the trees around him.

"You his bitch now?"

"I aint nobody's bitch," I said, my voice still weak.

"You're a joke's what ya are. Playin' errand boy to a buncha pansy-asses, niggers, and Democrats." He let out a humorless chuckle. "Yer nothin' but a freak to them, redneck trash. That's all ya are. Yeah, they're laughin' atcha 'hind yer back. Ya know that dontcha? Well, I got a little news for ya, son. One o' these days they're gonna scrape ya off o' their heels like ya was dog shit."

I could feel my pulse beating in my ears and my eyes started to close again.

Merle patted my chest, making me look back up at him. "Hey. They aint yer kin. Now if ya got any nuts down in that sack o' yers, you'll go back and shoot yer pal Rick in the face for me. Now ya listen to me," he leaned forward and grabbed my face in one hand, forcing me to look up at him. "Aint nobody ever gonna care 'bout ya 'cept me, lil' brother. Aint nobody ever will."

I had heard this line from Merle plenty of time when we were little. Every time our dad came home in a violent drunken rage and Merle and I would hide in the closet till he passed out, he would tell me that. But lately I wondered just how true that statement was. Kaiya cared.

He patted the side of my face and then started to stand. "Come on. Get up on yer feet, 'fore I have to kick ya teeth in." He stood and started to kick me in the foot, trying to get me up.

My eyes closed and for a moment I left them that way, though the kicks still came. I opened my eyes and looked down. I was expecting Merle to be standing there, still shaking my foot.

But instead, a walker was trying to bite through the rubber soles of my boots.

I whimpered and tried to get away.

He growled and looked up at me.

I kicked him in the side of the head with my other foot and tried to scramble backwards. I tried reaching for my crossbow and I almost had it, but the walker fell over on top of me. I held its arm back, trying to push it away so I would have enough time to grab the crossbow. I grabbed a rock from the ground beside me and slammed it as hard as I could into the walker's arm, making some bone or another make a large cracking sound.

While it was distracted by that, I punched it in the side of the face and rolled over on top of it.

But it had a hold on the back of my hair.

I fell back over but was able to throw it off me. I grabbed the stick I had discarded at the top of the hill and used the side of it to beat its face in. Then I turned it around and drove the point of it through its skull.

But a second walker was lumbering up.

I laid on my back and grabbed onto the arrow, beginning to pull. "UNGH!" I grunted loudly, trying not to yell as I ripped the arrow out.

It came out and I put it between my teeth. But this wasn't over yet. I grabbed onto my crossbow and tried to pull the drawstring back, but my weakened side was making it difficult. I pulled until finally it snapped back. I stuck the arrow in place and shot just as the walker was beginning to tower over me.

It fell to the ground, its face lifted up by the arrow.

I stayed laying on my back, trying to slow my heart rate and my breathing.

Today was by far the worst day ever.

* * *

><p><strong>Whew that was a kind of long chapter... Enjoy! :) <strong>


	52. Like A Hole In The Head

DARYL'S POV:

I looked around myself and sighed.

My side still stung like hell.

I sat up and walked over to the log in the middle of the water. I took my over shirt off and folded it up so I could press it onto the bloody wound in my side. I used my makeshift tourniquet to hold it in place so I would be free to walk around.

I grabbed onto my crossbow and sighed. "That son of a bitch was right."

I grabbed the squirrel off my belt and set it on its back, slicing down its body so I could eat the raw squirrel parts. It wasn't the greatest thing in the world, but I needed food and I needed it now. I didn't even mind that the blood matted the beard I had going on.

I unwrapped the fruit loops necklace from my wrist and placed it around my neck, sizing up the climb I had to make up the hill. This was going to be ever harder than before.

I was almost there when I felt tears coming to my eyes. The stinging in my side was too bad. I should just let go and fall back down this cliff.

_No! _Kaiya's voice roared in my ear. _You do not give up, Daryl Dixon! _

I sighed and looked up at the sky where two buzzards were circling.

"Please," came Merle's voice. "Don't feed the birds." Merle walked over to the edge of the cliff and grinned down at me. He chuckled. "Aw, what's the matter, Darlina? That all ya got left in ya?"

"I liked it better when ya was missin'," I grumbled, trying to back myself up the ridge.

Merle laughed again. "Now come on, don't be like that. I'm on yer side!"

"Since when?" I asked, looking around for anything I could hold onto. I spotted a vine and tried to use it to pull myself upwards.

"Hell since the day ya was born, baby brother. Someone had to look after yer worthless ass."

I grunted and pulled upward, gaining a little bit of distance. The top wasn't so far away now.

"Ya never took care of me," I panted. "Ya talked a big game, but ya was never there. Ya aint even here now. Some things never change."

"I'll tell ya what," Merle said, cocking his head to the side. "I'm as real as yer Chupacabra."

"I know what I saw," I growled, trying again to lift myself farther.

Merle chuckled. "Yeah, and I'm them 'shrooms ya ate had nothin' to do with it, right?"

"Ya best shut the hell up!" I yelled, glaring up the slope at him. He knows I didn't actually eat them. I just told that idiot we were with that I did.

"Or what?" he provoked, grinning. "Ya gonna come up here and shut my mouth for me? Do it then, ya think yer man enough." He laughed some more. "Hey, kick off them damn high heels and climb, son." His laughs grew evil.

I tried to tune out his jibes, pulling myself with the trees.

"Come on, lil' brother," he chuckled and held his hand out. "Grab yer friend, Rick's hand."

I flung my hand out and grabbed. I pulled on the grass at the top of the cliff, pulling myself up and trying to forget about how badly my side hurt.

I came up, resting on one knee. I gazed around in the trees. No Merle.

"Yeah, ya better run!"

I lumbered through the trees around Herschel's farm.

Blood coated my face and my hair stuck out a sloppy way. The fruit loops around my neck were still holding on and I slung my crossbow around behind me as I limped along.

I was in clear view of the farmhouse now. I couldn't see the people yet though. I was too far away and my vision was too fucked up.

I took slow steps, trying to make sure I didn't fall over.

Four people started running at me. I just kept stumbling forward. Rick, Shane, T-dog, and Glenn came to a halt in front of me, Rick with his pistol raised. They all gave me confused looks.

"Is that Daryl?" Glenn asked, not so quietly.

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing at my head," I growled. Everyone relaxed when I spoke; walkers cant talk. "Ya gonna pull the trigger, or what?"

Rick lowered his pistol, but someone's gun fired. And it got me.

I fell backwards, my temple buzzing painfully.

As if it wasn't bad enough I had been thrown over a cliff twice today, had to eat raw squirrel, had to listen to my hallucinatory brother, got an arrow to the side, got my boot chewed on by a walker, had to kill two walkers, had to pull the arrow out of myself to kill one of the walkers, all for a fruit loop necklace, I also had to get shot in the head.

I fell back onto the ground, white hot pain enveloping my head.

I heard shouts around me. Rick was yelling no over and over.

I felt myself being hauled upward. The bullet hadn't actually hit me. It had just grazed me. But it still hurt like hell.

"I's just kiddin'!" I grumbled.

I blacked out.

When I woke up, I was in a bed in one of the rooms at Herschel's house. Herschel was still stitching me up, but Rick and Glenn were in the room.

Glenn was sitting in the corner, fingering the necklace with a smile.

Rick had the map laid out on the bed in front of me.

"I found the necklace washed up on the creek bed right there," I pointed to a spot on the map and then brought the rag back up to my head. "She must've dropped it crossin' it somewhere."

"Cuts the grid almost in half," Rick said.

"Yeah, you're welcome," I said, looking down at Herschel working over my wounded side.

"How's he lookin'?" Rick asked Herschel.

"I had no idea we'd be going through antibiotics so quickly," the old man said, cutting the stitch. "Any idea what happened to my horse?"

"Yeah, the one that almost killed me? If its smart, it left the country," I snapped.

"We call that one Nelly. As in Nervous Nelly."

I closed my eyes and rolled them from under my lids.

"I could've told she would've thrown you if you'd bothered to ask. It's a wonder you people have survived this long."

They left shortly after that, leaving me to sleep. I thankfully took the quiet and fell back, trying to relax. Soon enough, I fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading! Review! :) <strong>


	53. Peanut Butter

GLENN'S POV:

I spent the majority of the day looking through some of the pictures Kaiya had stuffed into her backpack before we left her house the day everything changed. Most were of us.

The day we went to Disneyland. I had been 12 and she had been 8. We both wore Mickey Mouse hats and stuck our tongues out at the camera because they had changed colors from the ice pops we had eaten.

There was one from one of the sleepovers we had a few years ago for her 14th birthday party where we made goofy faces at the camera.

There was one I took where her mom was in the background of the kitchen icing the cake and her dad was looking at something on the kitchen table. Kaiya had her knees bent and was making one of her mock-model faces (raising one brow and sucking her cheeks in) at the camera, holding her hand up over the back of her head and dangling a cherry in front of her face.

I felt a few tears slip as I looked through the pictures. All of the birthday pictures made me remember something. I had asked Dale what day it was. He had said it was July 26th. It would be Kaiya's birthday tomorrow. Amy had died on her birthday. I hoped Kaiya wasn't going to end up like that.

After Daryl went to sleep, I realized something.

"We haven't been back to the highway to see if she made her way back yet," I said aloud in the middle of Herschel's living room as the women were preparing dinner.

Rick nodded. "We should go check."

Maggie looked up from the kitchen.

"I'm going to go find Andrea, I'm sure she'll want to come check with us," Rick continued.

I nodded and Rick left to go find Andrea who was probably off sulking about how she didn't know how to apologize for shooting Daryl.

Maggie came out of the kitchen. "Isn't that that girl's?" Maggie asked, eyeing the fruit loop necklace around my neck.

I smiled down at it, nodding.

I remembered the day I gave it to her. I had spent all night on it. My dad had sat up with me, making sure I got the right pattern of purple yellow, purple, red, purple, green. "_I'm sure she's gonna love it_," he had said. And he was right. She had loved it enough to keep it all those years.

"Who is she to you?" Maggie asked, crossing her arms and watching me harshly.

"Its not like that!" I defended immediately, holding my hands up.

Why had we always gotten this? People had always thought Kaiya and I were together growing up. But we were just together. Not _together _together.

"I've known her since she was born. Our dads were friends and she's been my best friend since we were little. She's like my sister. And she's missing." I sighed.

Maggie frowned. "I'm sure you'll find her."

I nodded and looked over my shoulder.

Rick had found Andrea.

"I'm gonna go and check the highway with Rick and Andrea for her."

Maggie smiled a little. "Let's hope your prayin' worked."

I chuckled and nodded, turning around and walking to the front door.

KAIYA'S POV:

It turns out that walker coming in through the back door last night had just been my imagination. I woke up unbitten, alive, and there was nothing in the house but me.

I left my gun by accident without thinking and after I left, couldn't find the house again.

I came across the creek I had seen when I first ran into the woods off the highway. I climbed down into it. The highway would be straight ahead on the other side of this creek.

I wondered if they had called the search off yet, or if they had even started searching. Were they even still on the highway? Had they left me?

I sighed and kept walking. I couldn't just not go on the chance that they had left. So I continued on.

I splashed through the water and pulled myself up on the other side. I grabbed at my neck out of habit to hold onto the necklace Glenn had given me, but it wasn't there. I panicked. I spun around, my heart in my throat. I couldn't have lost that, too. I let a few tears loose when I looked down and saw that the necklace was gone. The creek had probably washed it away. God damnit!

When night fell, I climbed up into a tree and found that the top was hollowed out. I slept in there and climbed out the next morning. I traveled on and didn't sleep the next night. I just sat in the branch of a tree and watched the forest around me.

That morning, I made it back to the highway.

I felt my heart race as I ran out of the cover of the trees and onto the grass of the hill I had run down to save Sophia. I ran up the hill, anxious to see some familiar faces. Or any faces that didn't have flesh hanging off in loose strands.

But I lost a little hope when I saw that the RV was no longer where it had been. Shane's jeep, Carol's Cherokee, Lori's station wagon, the Dixon bike… all gone.

"No," I whispered, my voice hoarse from disuse.

But as I turned around, I caught sight of a yellow car with words written on the windshield in white paint. "Kaiya stay here we will come everyday". On the hood of the car were bottles of water, a bottle of orange Gatorade, some cans of fruit, and one plastic jar of peanut butter.

I just about cried. I love peanut butter.

I knew night was about to fall, so I checked the inside of the car. No dead people and some comfortable-looking seats. I gathered up the food and drinks and piled them into the car so I could stay in here for the night.

I happily gulped the orange Gatorade down even though I liked this color Gatorade the least. I was just happy to see the familiar Gatorade label, something from my own life, flashing its thunderbolt symbol at me from its plastic wrapping.

I munched on a few peaches as I watched the sunset. But the painted-on windshield was making it hard to see. So I figured I would be fine just sitting on the hood. I got out, taking the peanut butter with me.

I pulled the plastic top off and waited for someone to come. I stuck my finger into the peanut butter and pulled some out, licking it off and savoring the peanut-flavor.

"Peanut butter is the best," I said, laughing.

I heard an engine begin to pull up and I was glad to say I recognized it. It was the station wagon.

But I didn't turn around.

I heard someone scramble out of the car, running up. I would know that nervous pattering pair of feet anywhere. I stood and turned to face him.

"Kaiya?" Glenn asked, his voice quiet and thick with tears. I could see them glistening in his eyes.

I had been planning on saying something cool, but I started to cry, too, so all I got out was, "Off-brand peanut butter sucks."

He laughed and ran toward me.

I dropped the peanut butter on the hood, running toward him. He grabbed me up and hugged me tightly around my shoulders.

"I missed you," Glenn whispered.

"I missed you too, Glenn. It was kind of scary out there, you know?" I pulled out of the hug and smiled up at Glenn. He held onto the sides of my face, wiping away tears with his thumb.

I heard someone whimper behind him and leaned around him to see Andrea running forward.

"Andrea!" I said, running up to catch her in my arms.

"I'm so happy to see you!" she said, hugging the life out of me.

"Its good to see you, too," I laughed.

"Hello, Kaiya," said a familiarly deep voice.

I pulled away from Andrea. "Officer," I smirked and mock-saluted him.

He grinned and held his arms open. "I think we're past formalities."

I smiled and, just because I missed human contact, hugged him, too.

"Its good to see you. I know everybody will be glad you're back."

I pulled out of his arms and gathered up the food and water that was left and climbed into the station wagon with them, Glenn holding my hand the entire ride to our new campsite. The Greene farm.

* * *

><p><strong>The wait is over! They've finally found her! Hope you liked it! :)<strong>


	54. Disbelief

KAIYA'S POV:

Glenn caught me up to everything that had happened since I got lost. Carl had gotten shot while he Rick and Shane were searching for me, Glenn had developed a crush on Herschel's daughter and he fucked her in a pharmacy (those parts he said quietly), and Daryl's whole crazy day. I couldn't believe he had gone through all of that just to find me.

And he had stumbled back to camp just to get shot in the head by Andrea. I guess that's what he gets for getting all bloodied up like a walker. If he had just stayed safe and waited for me to turn up, maybe he wouldn't have gotten shot. I was glad he was alright though.

I couldn't wait to see everybody.

I decided, after recent events, I wasn't mad at Daryl anymore. He didn't want me, fine. But if he got hurt anymore, I would kill him. I could deal with him not feeling like that about me, but not losing him. I wouldn't do it.

We pulled up outside Herschel's house and everyone (except Daryl and Carl) was waiting outside. They couldn't see me, though. They all had hopeful expressions. Except Shane who looked all around like he didn't believe I was even still alive.

"Lets play a little joke on them," I said, smirking.

Rick and Andrea shared a glance and a smirk and Glenn was just happy to go along with whatever I had planned as long as I was alive to joke around like this.

I told them the plan and they nodded discretely. They were all really good actors. They climbed out of the car with crestfallen expressions, walking slowly up the porch.

"Well?" Carol asked, stepping forward with an anxious expression.

I smiled. Good to know someone was worried about me.

I heard Rick say, "Well, we-"

That was my cue. Before he could continue on, I threw the door open and popped out. I was met with some tears, some disbelieving faces, and one incredulous. That one was Shane.

I walked up to him. "What? Didn't think I was alive?" I asked with a smirk and a wink.

I was passed around for hugs. Sophia was absolutely in bits. But she was beaming the whole time. Carol thanked me over and over for saving Sophia. I was introduced to all the Greene residents and then I was told that it was almost time for supper.

"Where's Daryl?" I asked, turning to Glenn.

"He's upstairs. Probably still asleep. We finally got him to fall asleep about an hour ago. He's been wanting to get back up and go search for you more ever since he got here. Even after he got shot."

I blushed and bit my lip around a smile. So he did care. I looked at Glenn's neck. "You found my necklace!"

He smiled and slipped it off his neck and put it over my head. "Daryl found it earlier today."

I smiled and clutched it. Then I threw my arms around Glenn's neck.

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Do you think Carl is awake now?" I asked, looking up at one of the top windows of the house.

Glenn nodded. "I'll take you to him." He grabbed my hand and led me into the house and into a room where Carl was laying.

"Kaiya?" he asked, his eyes widening in happiness. He had no shirt on and there was a bandage around his stomach.

"Hey munchkin!" I said, rushing over and hugging his head. I sat down on the edge of his bed.

He laughed and launched into a story about how he got shot. It was really sad to think about this poor little boy getting shot, but he thought it made him cool.

I smiled, listening, truly intrigued. It was so good to hear his detailed accounts of everything.

Toward the end of his story, he started blushing. "Do you - uh… Do you think Sophia thinks I'm brave for it?" he asked, gesturing to the bandage.

I grinned. "If she doesn't, she's crazy," I said, pulling his head into the crook of my arm for a head hug again and ruffling his hair. "You were very brave little man. And very strong. Good job pulling through, kiddo. I'm proud of you." I planted a kiss on his forehead and then looked up at the doorway.

Rick was standing there with a smile on his face.

"Dad," Carl asked, his eyes going wide and his face getting pale. "How much did you hear?" Aww, so he doesn't want his dad to know about his little crush. How cute!

Rick chuckled and stepped into the room. "Just the part about how brave and strong you were. Don't worry, I didn't hear that part about Sophia."

Carl sighed in relief. "Oh okay, good, 'cause I thought- hey wait!"

Rick laughed and looked over at me. "Dinner's ready."

I nodded and ruffled Carl's hair one more time before standing and going down into the dining room. I sat at the kiddy table with Sophia, Carl, Glenn, and Maggie. The dinner was good, but I was distracted by the tense conversations at the "adult" table and Maggie and Glenn passing notes like no one would notice.

Towards the end of dinner, Carol stood and said, "I'm gonna take a plate up to Daryl."

I stood up and held my hands out. "I'll take it for you."

She smiled and said thank you before handing me the plate of food and a glass of water. I asked her where the room was and after her directions, I made my way up the stairs, trying to slow my breathing.

I stopped at the door, my heart beating a mile a minute. I swallowed my nerves and knocked on the door.

"C'min," Daryl's familiar voice called.

It took all I had not to let my knees buckle and fall down right there. I took one more deep breath and opened the door.

* * *

><p><strong>And the anticipation begins to build. I can already hear all of you shouting at me for ending the chapter there. But if you review, maybe I'll get another chapter up faster ;) Hope you liked it! <strong>


	55. Just Another Nightmare

DARYL'S POV:

I laid on my right side, so I didn't fuck up the stitches on my left side, and stared at the sheets beneath me as I thought about Kaiya. Where could she be? Was she cold? Was she hungry? Was she hurt? Would she be alright another night?

I would not ask myself the question everyone else seemed to be asking. _Is she still alive?_ What the hell kind of a question is that? Kaiya doesn't die. She couldn't. What would I do if she did? I didn't even know. So you see, its impossible.

I heard a knock at my door.

"C'min," I said, not turning around.

The door creaked open and someone set down a plate and a glass on the table beside my bed. I still didn't turn around.

"Thanks," I mumbled.

"No problem," said an all too familiar voice.

I furrowed my brows and frowned. Now I'm hallucinating her voice again?

I started to turn my head to see who it really was, but when I did, Kaiya was standing there, her arms crossed and a smile on her face. Her hair was a total mess and there was dirt smeared on her face, but she was still beautiful.

"Hey there, stud," she smirked, coming over to the other side of my bed and sitting on the edge. I watched her carefully.

"I get it," I said.

She gave me a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"I'm asleep, huh? I'm dreamin' still. This is just another nightmare. In about two seconds you're gonna turn into a walker. Then I'm gonna have to wake up tomorrow morning and pretend nothin's wrong while I go out and look for ya," I grumbled, not even looking at her. "Kinda sucks. Really thought I had been awake. Maybe I'm goin' batshit."

She frowned deeper. "You've been having nightmares?"

I narrowed my eyes at her. "You should know."

She reached a hand up to my face, but I flinched away. The hurt that streaked its way through her eyes was there and gone too quickly for me to be sure it had really been there. That brief moment of weakness made me hurt, too.

So I stayed still this time when she leaned forward and put a cool hand on my cheek. I closed my eyes and focused on the feel of her hand on my face. I didn't even care if this was a nightmare anymore. If I could have moments like this with her, I could deal with it when I woke up and realized it was a dream.

Soon I felt her lips on mine. She ran her tongue along my bottom lip and then pulled away. I hadn't wanted the moment to be over so soon.

I opened my eyes.

She had hers closed. "I thought I'd never see you again," she said, a single tear sliding down her face.

I wiped it away with my thumb. "This feels more real than the other dreams," I mused aloud.

She sighed and opened her eyes. "This is real, Daryl."

My heart skipped a beat at the sound of my name. "How can I be sure?" I asked, lowering my eyes and looking at the bedding beneath us.

She raised a hand and thumped my forehead.

"Ouch! What the hell?" I said, holding a hand to my forehead.

She smirked.

So… this was real? She was really here? "Kaiya?" I asked, starting to sit up.

She nodded, tears coming to her eyes.

"Y-you're really here?"

She nodded again and scooted forward.

I pulled her closer to me and hugged her. I held a hand to the back of her head, holding her against my chest as a few silent tears rolled down my face. I wouldn't let her up till those tears were gone. Or maybe I just wouldn't let go at all.

I leaned back and brought her with me. "Thank you," I whispered in her ear.

"For what?" she asked, tears thick in her voice.

"Findin' yer way back to me."

She laughed. "Well, thank you," she whispered.

"For?"

"The peanut butter," she joked.

"Seriously, for what?" I asked.

"For looking."

"Well, what was I supposed to do? Just leave ya?"

She shook her head. "I'm glad you didn't just leave me, but I'm kinda pissed off at you for getting so banged up," she pulled out of my arms and looked me over. She smirked. "You're completely filthy."

I grinned and looked down. "Ya didn't mind a second ago."

She leaned back down and laid beside me, her head on my chest and her arm thrown over my stomach (carefully avoiding my bandaged side). "I still don't."

I sighed and wrapped my arm around her waist, leaning my cheek down on top of her head. "I missed ya, kid."

I could practically hear her smiling. "Missed you, too, old man." She turned her head and pecked me on the cheek. "Now go to sleep. You need to recuperate."

I chuckled and closed my eyes.

For the first time in a while, I didn't have any nightmares.

* * *

><p><strong>Aww finally they are reunited! :) Review! <strong>


	56. Good To Be Back

KAIYA'S POV:

I opened the door and stepped inside, my heart trying its hardest to beat its way out of my chest.

His shirt was off and he was covered in dirt. There were some bandages around his torso and his head. His hair was a total mess, but I liked it like that.

My heart stopped for a total of 3 seconds when I saw him. I set the glass and the plate on the bedside table before I dropped them.

He must've heard them hit the tabletop, because he said, "Thanks." His voice had an effect on me I would never be able to describe. But I liked it.

"No problem," I said.

His whole body tensed up when I spoke. He started to shift around and then, finally, he turned his head to look at me.

I crossed my arms and smiled at him, fighting to make sure I didn't grab at the spot over my heart.

His stubble had grown into somewhat of a beard and his blue eyes were darkened a little bit, but they were still beautiful. He was frowning. I felt a little bit of disappointment, but shrugged it off.

"Hey there, stud," I smirked. I moved around the bed and came over to sit on the edge of his bed, on the side farthest from the door.

He watched my every move very closely, as if trying to decide whether I was trustworthy or not. "I get it," he said after a moment.

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I'm asleep, huh? I'm dreaming still. This is just another nightmare. In about two seconds you're gonna turn into a walker. Then I'm gonna have to wake up tomorrow morning and pretend nothing is wrong while I go out and look for you," he said, scowling down at the sheets. "Kinda sucks. I really thought I had been awake. Maybe I'm going batshit."

I felt a little sadness swell in my stomach. "You've been having nightmares?"

He looked up then, looking at me through squinted eyes. "You should know."

I lifted a hand and was going to put it to the side of his face, but he flinched and moved back. I felt disappointment and hurt build up. Was it really that bad to see me?

But I wasn't giving up that easily. I reached up again and this time he didn't move. I put my hand softly over his cheek.

He closed his eyes when my hand touched his skin. I thought I heard him sigh, but I couldn't be sure. I watched the muscles in his face move and jump slightly as he kept his eyes closed. He looked just the same as he had before. Perfect.

I leaned forward and pressed my lips lightly to his. He didn't really react, but I could tell he was kissing me back. I ran my tongue along his smooth lower lip and then pulled away, my heart about to explode.

I kept my hand on his face but leaned away.

He slowly opened his eyes. His head was tilted down, so his forehead cast a slight shadow over his eyes. I could watch his eyes forever.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head down, one tear falling when I realized how close I was to dying out there and how sheer luck had brought me back. "I thought I'd never see you again," I whispered.

I felt his slide his thumb over the tear, wiping it away. "This feels more real than the other dreams," Daryl murmured.

I opened my eyes with a sigh. "This is real, Daryl."

"How can I be sure?" He sounded like he really wanted to believe me, but didn't want to in case of the disappointment to follow if I was lying.

I lifted my hand back up and thumped him in the center of his forehead.

"Ouch! What the hell?" he said, lifting his hand to his forehead and growling slightly at me. I couldn't help but smirk; it was so good to hear him get angry again.

He seemed to realize that real pain = real life. I could see it in his eyes as he looked back up at me. "Kaiya?" he asked, shifting around again.

I loved the way it sounded when he said my name, but I never really realized how much before I got lost. Guess it really makes you realize just what you've got.

I could see the tears welling up in the corners of my eyes. I nodded, smiling.

"Y-you're really here?" he asked, sitting up.

I nodded again and moved toward him, feeling the sudden need to be closer to him.

He reached out and grabbed my shoulders, pulling me to him and holding me again his chest. He put a hand on the back of my head, and held me tight. I thought he might be crying a little bit, but I would never think of voicing that thought. He started to lean back against the wall.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"For what?" I asked, embarrassed when I realized he could probably hear that I was crying. Hell, he could probably feel the wetness on his bare chest.

"Findin' your way back to me," he said.

I grinned and let out a laugh. "Well, thank you," I whispered again his chest.

"For?" he asked.

"The peanut butter," I said, making it obvious I was only kidding. I knew it had been him that left it out there for me. I couldn't exactly say how, but I knew.

"Seriously, for what?" he asked. I could hear his words echoing through his chest with my ear pressed up against it like it was.

I smiled and closed my eyes. "For looking."

"Well, what was I supposed to do?" he asked, suddenly a bit defensive. "Just leave ya?"

I shook my head with a frown. "I'm glad you didn't just leave me, but I'm kinda pissed off at you for getting so banged up." I pulled my head from his chest and looked at him with a smile. "You're completely filthy."

He chuckled and looked himself over. "Ya didn't mind a second ago."

I leaned back down immediately, placing my head back on his chest with a content sigh. I put my left arm under his torso and placed my right arm carefully over his stomach, being sure to avoid his bandage. "I still don't."

He sighed and wrapped his arms around me, tilting his head to the side so he could rest his cheek on the top of my head.

This felt perfect. This felt normal. I wanted it to be like this forever.

"I missed ya, kid," he said. I knew that was a rare thing to come from this man, so I relished it thoroughly.

I smiled widely into his chest. "Missed you, too, old man." I turned and pecked him on the cheek then said, "Now go to sleep. You need to recuperate."

He laughed and pretty soon, his breathing was completely even. But his arms around me didn't loosen.

I sighed and snuggled closer to him.

It was good to be back.

It was weird sleeping without the constant fear that I wouldn't wake up. It was weird sleeping with a man that wasn't Glenn holding me all night. But it was a nice weird.

I didn't open my eyes when I woke up, I just enjoyed the sensation of a human's warmth around me, mentally taking inventory of my body.

I was curled up kind of in a ball on my side, facing the wall with my back to the door. There was a pillow under my head and blankets were over me.

Behind me, Daryl was curled up around me. His chest was pressed up against my back and his forehead was leaned against the back of my head. His left arm was snaked tightly around my waist, his hand resting over my tummy and holding me to him. My hand was laid just over his.

I sighed with a smile and threaded my fingers through those of the hand over my stomach.

"Mornin'," he whispered, his deep voice close to my ear.

"Hi," I said, leaving my eyes closed. Through my eyelids, I could see the bright morning light filtering in through the thin curtains. "How're you feeling?" I asked, thinking about the white bandage wrapped around his ribs.

"A little sore. Better now that yer back."

I grinned. "And why is that?"

He nestled his face into the side of my neck, tickling me. I giggled a little. "Innit obvious?" he asked.

I opened my eyes and turned my head to look up at him. "What do you mean?" I asked, furrowing my brows.

His eyes were still closed and the bandage around his head was still in place. There were blood and dirt stains covering every exposed inch of his skin.

"I care about ya, kid," he murmured, tightening his arm around my waist.

I frowned. "That's not the impression you gave me back at the CDC-"

"I know," he said, finally opening his gorgeous blue eyes. He slowly reached a hand into his pants pocket and pulled out a folded-up piece of paper.

"What's this?" I asked, taking the paper.

"Read it." He began to sit up, resting his back against the wall.

I unfolded the paper and read over the familiar words. "Did you read this whole thing?" I asked, my heart beating hard.

He just nodded, not looking my in the eye.

Aww hell. It was the note I had left in that farmhouse I stayed in. The one that said I loved Daryl.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh snap! :O What's Kaiya gonna do? What's Daryl gonna do? I don't know, guess we'll just have to wait and see :)<strong>


	57. Faker

KAIYA'S POV:

"Oh God," I moaned, leaning my face into the paper. I felt him put his hand on my back.

I shied away from his touch, scared of what he might think now. He didn't even like me like that and now he knew that I was completely, 127% head-over-heels in love with him. Well, he didn't quite know that far into my feelings; the note only said I _thought _I loved him. Maybe I could play that off.

I tried to be the best actor I could and turned to face him. "Look, I'm really sorry you had to read that. I was kind of out of it when I wrote that, you know? I was hungry and tired and worn out. Sorry, its kind of awkward that I even thought up something like that," I said, chuckling lightly.

He looked around him for a minute, confused. Then he looked up at me and opened his mouth like he was going to say something. Then he closed is again and clenched his jaw.

"Daryl?" I asked, worried that he might blow up. That look in his eyes hinted at the angry outbursts he was capable of. I hoped he wouldn't do what I knew he would.

"Go," he said, his voice firm, yet calmer and quieter than I had thought it would be.

But I was confused, and a little hurt. Why did he want me to go? I just got back after being lost in the woods with walkers all around for almost a week. And from what I heard, he seemed to be putting in more effort than the rest to find me. You would think after finally finding me, he would want to spend a little more time with me.

"What?" I asked.

"Ya heard me. Get out." I almost wanted him to explode and start yelling; I would've been able to handle that. But this new, calm, but strained quietness in his commands was scary. It wasn't Daryl.

When I didn't move, he barked, "Leave, Kaiya!"

I jumped and walked over to the door, looking at the floor without really seeing it, appearing to look through it from the outside. I was trying to figure out what had happened.

I could feel tears stinging my eyes. I felt my anger flare. He had done it again. I was crying and I didn't even know why.

I put my hand on the doorknob and turned back to look at him, tears pooled in my lower lid. "You are quite the character, Mr. Dixon," I said, making that sound bad.

I saw something flash across his features, but it was replaced by nearly-blank fury almost instantaneously.

In one swift movement, I had given a growl of frustration, flung the door open, run out the door, and slammed the door shut behind me.

God damn that Dixon!

DARYL'S POV:

Waking up with her had been quite the experience. But so was having to come to terms with the fact that she hadn't really meant what she wrote in that note.

The door closed behind her with a click that rang through the room eerily. It made me feel more than a little alone and immediately I felt cold.

I pulled the blanket up around me and laid my head back down on the pillow, watching the spot where she had lain just a few minutes ago. I slowly reached my hand out to touch the spot where she had been only a few seconds ago. It was still warm. I withdrew my hand as if the spot had burned me. I scowled and pulled the covers up around my head, blocking me from view from anyone who would enter the room.

"Damn girl," I growled into the bedding.

I love her. She doesn't even want me. It had been obvious she at least used to back at the CDC; she had been terribly angry when she thought I didn't want her.

Maybe her time alone out in the woods had given her time to think. Maybe she had thought about how I supposedly did want her and eventually grew to not want me anymore.

But then what had that kiss been about last night? Just an attempt at getting me to realize that I really was awake? Even if I had wanted to, I couldn't have convinced myself of that. It had felt too real. Too emotional. It had been an expression. Of what, I wasn't sure. But she had been trying to tell me something with that kiss last night and now, I wouldn't be able to figure it out.

She probably hates me now. I groaned and closed my eyes, willing myself back to sleep. I still didn't have any nightmares, but I couldn't decide which was worse. The nightmares or having her here with me and hating my guts.


	58. Panic

GLENN'S POV:

I could tell something was up with Kaiya when she walked out of the Greene's farmhouse with red eyes and an angry expression, but I knew better than to quiz her when she was in that kind of a mood. And I had some pretty important stuff to deal with, so I just left her alone as she stormed over to our tent and went inside with a huff.

After a very intense conversation with Lori about her pregnancy, she gave me a list of vitamins and other stuff.

Maggie and I made the trip into town, but there had been some complications. A walker had almost gotten her. Which was why, when we got back, she blew up at Lori, throwing all of her items at her and yelling at her to try risking her own life next time.

Later that afternoon, I felt it was time to come clean about all those walkers in the barn. I had been getting anxious about it and sweating and fretting about it was hurting my head more than just thinking about it.

I didn't even care if Maggie did get mad at me anymore; she seemed to be getting mad at every little thing lately and the way she had blown up at Lori when I had been the one to offer to get her things was a total turnoff. Plus, I had to keep my sister safe.

So when we were sitting down in the afternoon, with everyone (including Daryl who had been moved out of the house earlier) sitting around, I stood up, drawing the attention of everyone.

I felt extremely tense and got a sudden sense of déjà vu. In the fourth grade, I had to stand up on a stage in front of the entire school and say the pledge of allegiance. With the heat of the bright light above, I had sweat right through my good shirt and ended up throwing up in the middle of "For which it stands".

But this wasn't fourth grade, Melissa Hamilton wasn't laughing at me, and I wasn't some insecure little kid anymore. I was someone with responsibility. I had to protect Kaiya as well as all these other people who had come to be rather like a family to us.

So I gathered all of my strength and said, "There are walkers in the barn."

I was met with some blank stares before an uproar ensued.

Shane was yelling something incomprehensible over the shouting of Rick.

Carol and Sophia looked like they were going to cry.

Andrea looked like she wanted to throw up.

Lori clutched Carl to herself tightly.

Dale just nodded; I had told him earlier.

T-dog frowned deeply, but did nothing else.

Daryl stood swiftly, stretching to his full height despite the wounds on his torso and head.

But Kaiya's reaction was the one that scared me most. She just sat, her eyes darkening as they narrowed into thin slits, shadowed with rage. Her breathing was far too even and calm-looking to be good for anybody involved with the caging in of those walkers.

It was a look I had only seen her use a few times in our lives. Sure her other death glares looked similar to some degree, but none were quite as frightening as this.

Every time she used this look, someone got hurt. Badly. I feared for anyone who stood in her way when that time came.

I swallowed down my fear and sat back to listen to the sounds of panic erupting from the group.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry it took so long, and sorry for such a short chapter : I've been pretty busy with school and stuff lately. I will try my hardest to get more to you, though. Hope you liked it! **


	59. Sorry

DARYL'S POV:

I gripped the arrow in my hand and poked yet another hole through the mesh over the opening of my tent that served for a window. It was so weird not to be moving around constantly and doing something. I felt so… useless.

I heard someone enter the tent and looked up. Andrea was walking in, a bag around her shoulders and something in her hands. She walked in farther and held it out to me. It was a book. "This is not that great, but uh…"

I flipped through a few of the pages as she trailed off and sighed. "What, no pictures?" I asked, glancing over at her.

She chuckled. "Look, I'm really sorry about-"

I cut her off. "Ya were just lookin' out for the group."

She nodded and then sighed. "Have you told her?"

I set the book down and turned to look at her. "What?"

She met my eyes. "Kaiya. Have you told her?"

"Told her what?"

She sighed and gave me an exasperated look. "That you love her."

I quickly shushed her and held a hand down.

"You haven't?" she asked incredulously.

"She fuckin' hates me, now, too." I explained to her just what happened earlier.

She frowned. "Doesn't sound like Kaiya at all."

I nodded. "Yeah, well, she don't feel like that 'bout me, so I'm not even gonna tell her."

Andrea looked disappointed. "But you have to!"

I looked at her. She was worse than Kaiya. "And why do I gotta do anything?"

She sighed. "Because you just do."

I looked around for a minute. "I'll tell ya what. If ya can actually get Kaiya to talk to me again (unlikely), then I'll confess to her."

Her eyes popped wide open. "You mean it?"

I nodded. What did I have to lose?

If she would talk to me again, I would tell her and if she didn't feel that way, then she would probably just go right back to not talking to me. If she did… well, I wasn't sure but we would figure that out if and when that time came.

She squealed delightedly and hopped up, turning towards the tent door.

"And if ya shoot me again," I called after her. "Ya best pray I'm dead."

She chuckled and continued to walk away.

* * *

><p>That evening, after everyone got back from shooting practice, Glenn announced that there were walkers in the barn.<p>

I stood quickly, ignoring the pain that laced through my side at the motion. I saw Kaiya giving one of the meanest glares I had ever seen to the barn across the field from us.

That night, when we went to sleep, we resolved that Rick would go and talk to Herschel about the walkers that night. But with the news weighing heavily on everyone's mind, I'm sure no one got any sleep. Because I knew I sure didn't.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry about all the incredibly short chapters, but it's all I'm able to get out right now. I hope you liked it! :)<strong>


	60. As We Leave It All Behind

KAIYA'S POV:

The next morning, after a night of laying with my eyes wide open and staring, I sat on the porch of the Greene house. I was on the steps, biting nervously at my nails. It was a habit I had only recently picked up. I used to not bite my nails at all, but with the recent apocalypse, I had to have some kind of little quirk to occupy myself.

I was waiting for Rick to come out of the house. He was inside talking to Herschel about his walker barn.

What on earth would someone keep a bunch of walkers in a barn this close to where they were staying? Why not kill them? I didn't understand what was going on in Herschel's mind.

But Rick was inside, asking him about the walkers. I guess that was a more polite way of saying he was asking permission to kill those rotting bastards. If Herschel said yes, we would get the job done as quickly and quietly as possible. If he said no, however, we would move on.

There was nothing keeping us here but the idea of a permanent shelter. If there were walkers living in a barn only a little ways away, though, I didn't see how it was any safer than the streets and campsites in the woods.

Someone sat down beside me. I looked over, hoping it was Rick and we would have an answer. But it was just Andrea. "Hey," she said, giving me a little smile.

I smiled back, continuing to chew on my nails.

"Worried?" I nodded.

She patted my back. "Don't worry. We'll be alright. Rick's gonna handle it. Now… while we're waiting on the good sheriff, why don't you tell me what's been up between you and Daryl?"

I looked over at her, startled. How had she known? "Is it really that obvious?" I asked with a blush.

"Which part? The part where you two both very obviously have a thing for each other, or the part where you're totally pissed at him? Well, I don't think anybody else notices anything but the anger."

It would figure that they would only pay attention to the hostility of the two most temperamental people in camp. No one would think to observe any closer; no one would think about Daryl going after someone so much younger. Or at least they didn't think it would be a problem if I went after someone so much older than myself.

I frowned and began to tell her the story.

"So you love him?" she asked, looking excited.

I sighed and put my head in my hands, feeling a headache coming on. Sometimes Andrea reminded me a lot of Amy. Constantly wanting to gossip about boys (even when the majority of them were dead), and always asking about how I felt about Daryl. "If I said yes, would you think I was crazy?"

She laughed. "No. I mean, I would think you were crazy for loving that crazy hick, but not for loving. I mean, I don't think many teenagers understand what love is. They just kinda throw the word around like its nothing. But you seem to have a level head on your shoulders. I think you know the difference between love and lust."

I looked over at her. She was absolutely ecstatic-looking despite everything. "Can you do me a favor?" I asked, crossing my arms against my knees.

She nodded happily.

"Stop smiling like that, you're really freaking me out."

She immediately wiped the goofy grin off her face and said, "I think you should at least talk to him."

I frowned. Honestly it didn't sound all that unappealing. But I didn't be the one to give in.

Just as I was opening my mouth to voice this thought, Andrea stopped me, standing up and beginning to walk away. "Just think about it."

I sighed and closed my eyes. After a few minutes of me sitting there and thinking about talking to Daryl again, the door behind me opened. I turned my head.

Rick was walking out, a grim expression on his face. He looked down at me and sighed, sitting next to me. We sat in silence for a few moments, both of us just looking out at the landscape around us.

"We're moving on, aren't we?" I asked, not taking my eyes off the scenery.

He nodded and stood to walk back to the campers huddled around by the RV.

I squinted out at the land in front of me. It seemed I was picking up some of Daryl's bad habits as well as my own. He seemed to squint an awful lot. He was going to have wrinkles by the end of the month.

We wouldn't be as sheltered anymore, and Glenn would have to leave behind his summer love, but we might be a little safer out there than being kept in such close proximity with a group that had been locked up.

I watched from a distance as Rick began to tell the campers what was what. Faces fell, silent tears rolled, and Daryl just listened intently to Rick's words. I watched his face carefully, noting every small detail. He must've sensed my staring, because his eyes flicked straight over to me. I blushed, but kept watching him.

Hoping he understood the message, I stood, still keeping eye contact with him, and walked around the side of the house and out of view of our camp. I leaned up against the side of the house, waiting. Sure enough, only a few minutes later, Daryl walked around the side of the house.

I crossed my arms and watched the ground. "So, Andrea got me to talk to you. I'm assuming you put her up to that?"

He hesitated. "Kinda."

"What do you mean kinda? You either did or you didn't." I looked up at him.

"She told me if I told you… something that I've been meaning to tell you… that she would get you to talk to me."

I gave him a confused look. "What have you been meaning to tell me?"

He looked around for a minute and I swear he blushed. "Just, c'mere, alright?"

I did as he said and stepped forward without a second thought.

He wrapped his arms around me, immediately squeezing me to him. "I guess I kinda gotta get this out… No tellin' if I'll even be around tomorrow to tell ya if I don't get it out now."

I grimaced at the thought. I stepped back, looking up at him with my arms still around his waist. "Daryl, what are you talking about?"

He took one deep breath before he said three words that I never thought possible. "I love ya."

**THE END **

* * *

><p><strong>Yes, that is the end of this story. I'm sorry i left it there, but i figured sixty would be a good, rounded number to stop it at. Yes, that is it for Game Over... But soon enough, there shall be a sequel! Maybe sooner than you think ',:) <strong>


	61. EXTRA! That Night At The CDC

**I am finally putting up the events of that night at the CDC. Did they or didn't they? I guess you'll just have to read and see :) And I am currently in the process of creating the sequel to Game Over, so look out for that. Anyway, enjoy! :) **

KAIYA'S POV:

I opened the door to see Daryl standing there, his hand on the back of his head. His eyes were glued to the corner of the door by my foot.

I looked from him to the spot he was concentrating so hard on and back to him. Then I bent down and waved my hand a few times in front of the door's corner. "I think you're more drunk than me," I slurred, tipping my bottle up again and walking back over to my bed.

I could hear his footsteps follow me into the room and follow me over to the bed. I sat back against the wall, positioning myself as I had been sitting before Daryl got here.

He sat down on the edge of the bed. I silently passed the bottle to him. After he had taken a few drinks, I broke the silence.

"So what'd you need?"

His form was getting a little blurry.

He waited until taking another long gulp and handing me the bottle back to answer. "Just came to… uh, see how yer doin'."

I cocked a brow at him and gave him a "really? That's the best you can come up with?" look. "Damn," I said, my words slurring dangerously. "Even when I'm drunk I can tell you're lying." I smirked and brought the bottle back to my lips.

But the bottle was yanked away and replaced by a pair of lips. I kinda preferred the warm, peppermint taste of Daryl's tongue to the burning alcohol. I could tell from the strong back layer of flavoring in Daryl's mouth that he was pretty trashed, too.

I felt him start to shift and opened my eyes to see him crawling up onto the bed on his hands and knees trying not to break the kiss. I smiled into his mouth and moved around so I was sitting up on my knees, facing him sitting the same way.

He pulled out of the kiss for a minute and held a finger up. He leaned over and placed the bottle gently on the ground beside the bed. He turned back to face me, tenderness, lust, compassion, and longing all bundled together in the way he whispered, "Kaiya."

Both of us lifted our hands to slowly reach forward and seize the other's face, just watching. I rubbed my thumb over his cheek, smiling at the faint red covering it. I dropped my hand down to his shirt, unbuttoning it, fumbling a little with drunken fingers.

He kept watching my face as I set to my task. When it was completely unbuttoned, he shrugged out of it, tossing it down beside the liquor.

I admired his nicely toned stomach and chest, laying my hands on them and trailing my fingers along the warm skin over the tight muscles. I felt him shudder under the light dragging of my cold fingers and grinned. He grabbed onto my hand and pulled me forward, holding me against him in a hug.

I nuzzled his chest with my cheek, raising one hand to rest in front of my face just over his heart. I could feel it beating unevenly under my palm. I pulled my head back a little and then kissed from his chest up his neck until I reached his mouth. I hoped that was sexy and not clumsy. Whatever, he's drunk, too, he'll understand.

I felt along his arms, squeezing it and beginning to feel my common sense leave me.

But the door opened suddenly, swinging inward to reveal a red-eyed Glenn. He was quite obviously hammered.

Daryl jumped away, not bothering to put his shirt back on. Not that I minded.

Glenn walked in, completely ignoring the two of us and sat down on the bed, eyes wide and staring.

I put a hand on his shoulder. "Glenn, are you alright?"

He turned his eyes to me. "I'm. So. Drunk."

I chuckled. "You're not the only one, kid," I said, patting his back and sitting down, trying to calm my racing heart.

"You guys, too?" he asked, eyes drooping and his tone sounding like that of a little kid high on laughing gas. Naïve and slow.

Daryl nodded, blinking the spots from his vision.

"Lets go cause some mayhem," I said, grabbing them both by their elbows and tugging them from the room. In my drunken stupor I forgot about being mad at Glenn.

We skipped (or at least I did) down to the rec room.

When we opened the door, Shane and Lori were standing there. Lori looked frightened and Shane looked pissed and disappointed.

"Hola!" Glenn called, making them jump.

"Howdy," Daryl said, nodding goofily to them.

Feeling left out of the greeting, I threw in, "Aloha!"

Shane cocked a brow at us. "What are you guys doing?" He took a few steps closer, inspecting Glenn. "Your eyes are red, Glenn. How much have you been drinking?"

Glenn seemed to seriously consider that, frowning in thought at the ground. "Gee, occifer. Your eyes look really glazed. How many donuts have you been eating?"

Shane gave him a flat, unimpressed look and stomped past him, leaving Daryl and I to chuckle at his joke that, unfortunately, would be forgotten by us three the next morning.

I got a brilliant idea. "Guys, we gotsta be ninjas for a few minutes, alrrrighty?" I asked, whispering loudly and making them huddle closer.

"I was born a ninja," Glenn defended.

I nodded and started walking out of the rec room and down the hall, quickly trying to be sneaky. But what we thought was stealthy was probably actually lumbering and uncoordinated. We made our way down the hall, still sneaking for reasons unknown, but I had learned long ago never to question a drunk… Especially if that drunk is yourself. It only leads to more chaos.

We snuck along the wall, going to the cord hooked up to my phone. I yanked it off and then we hightailed it out of the cafeteria like kids stealing cookies from the cookie jar. Glenn and Daryl were snickering for no reason at all, trying to keep their laughter quiet.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head, beginning to walk back down the hall to the rec room. "Drunks."

I noticed Andrea beginning to walk through the door to her room. She glanced around at us before giving me an amused smirk. "Booze wont solve your problems," she sang.

"Neither will milk!" I called back to her, making her grin. I led Glenn and Daryl back into the rec room and we began looking through everything, trying to find anything to keep our ethanol-clouded minds occupied. All we found were a deck of cards, a plastic fish, and a bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey. We held onto our newly found toys and ran back to my room.

It was weird to see Daryl so… what was the word… giddy? Goofy? Drunk?

Glenn passed me the plastic fish. I just looked at it. What in the hell was I supposed to do with this?

I threw it in his face and set my camera up, ready to snap any random shots I could. I got one of Daryl smacking Glenn in the back of the head with the fish.

"Hey, guys," Glenn said, calling our attention to him.

"Yeah?" Daryl asked, eyes red and limply beginning to fall.

"Why does a place with a bunch of smarty-pants doctors have a plastic fish in it? It doesn't add up," he examined the fish in his hands, moving it over and over as though he thought it was a spy.

I snapped a picture of that.

I grabbed the bottle of Jack Daniels and handed it to Glenn, snatching the fish and throwing it back against the wall.

"To drink or not to drink?" Glenn asked, his words slurring.

"Who said that?" Daryl asked.

"Shakes-beer," Glenn said, snorting with laughter.

I giggled and tumbled over, leaning against Daryl's strong arm for support.

He grinned lopsidedly down at me. "Whiskey is risky, but it makes the girls frisky," Daryl said, wiggling his eyebrows.

I rolled my eyes and snatched the bottle back, ripping the top off and downing a fiery gulp. I shook my head and grasped Daryl's arm a bit harder. He chuckled, taking a swig himself. As the bottle went around, we got considerably more drunk and stupid.

Nothing that was said made sense. Until Glenn said, "Let's play strip poker!" and pulled out the deck of cards. Of course Daryl and I, being the drunken lunatics we were, thought this was the best idea ever and told him to deal.

We didn't play by the rules at all, just throwing out whatever cards we could and taking off an article of clothing any time we felt compelled to do so. We thought this had been the most productive and amazingly game of poker ever, but we were sorely mistaken. It mainly consisted of drunken ramblings and us making new rules up every turn.

By the end of the game, Daryl was in just his boxers, Glenn was in his, and I was still in all my underwear (bra and panties alike) and jeans. The two boys' eyes had nearly popped out of their heads when I took my shirt off. How weird. I was like Glenn's little sister and that was probably the first time he had seen a real life woman (I don't know what he does in his alone time!) without her shirt on.

I smiled smugly at them. "Guess I won," I said, picking through the pile of clothing beside me.

"Come on, that's no fair!" Glenn said.

"Why not?" I pouted.

"Because we're over here in our undies and yer still in most of yer clothes. Damn cheat," Daryl grumbled, taking another drink of the Jack Daniels bottle.

"I'm not a cheat!" I defended.

"Then you gotta do something to make it up to us," Glenn said, handing me the bottle.

I took a drink and considered. But I was drunk so my thought process didn't really get too far. "Like what?"

"Hickey!" Daryl said.

Glenn and I both turned to stare at him; this was the weirdest thing to be said all night. And we had been drunk and just spewing shit randomly all night.

"We gotta give ya a hickey," he explained, leaning back and looking pleased with himself.

I thought about it and thought 'eh what the hell?' kinda like when you're drunk… oh, right. "Alright. But only if you promise not to call me a cheat again," I said, pointing at Daryl.

He nodded, grinning.

"Alright, so who is doin' this?" I asked, standing up.

"Both of us," Daryl replied.

I would never have agreed to this (letting Glenn, practically my brother, give me a hickey), but I was drunk and there was not much I could do to keep any kind of sense whatsoever. "Alright," I sighed.

Glenn and Daryl stood up. Glenn looked like he didn't want to do this and I bet, because he was drunk, he thought he was the one getting tricked into stuff. "Where?" Glenn asked, looking up at Daryl.

Daryl looked my topless (not braless) body over. "Anywhere unclothed."

Glenn grimaced and stepped forward, putting his mouth to my neck, beginning to suck. Never in all my life have I felt more awkward.

Then Daryl stepped forward in only his boxers just as Glenn was. "Glenn, leave," he said, not turning away from me.

"Thank you!" Glenn shouted, running from the room. Guess he didn't want to make things more awkward and just stand there and watch. I guess he also forgot about the scene he had created earlier in the cafeteria. We were all drunk, so we all had.

As soon as Glenn left the room, the ferocious lust was right back in Daryl's eyes, burning and consuming.

I bit my lip to hide a smile and backed up against a wall.

He moved forward, putting his hands on the wall on either side of me. He leaned down and crushed my lips with his.

I grabbed the back of his head, latching onto his hair and pulling him down to me.

He growled against my lips, making me shiver. He grinned and pulled his face back only a few centimeters. Then he moved his hands from the wall to my shoulders. He gave me a playful smirk and said, "Hickey time," then bent down to put pressure on the exposed area above my bra on my left breast.

I giggled softly and sat back and let it happen. When he stood back up, I looked down and could only make out the purplish bruising, not actually defined shapes. Though I could tell there was some kind of design to it.

I grabbed my bag and started to walk over to the bathroom. On my way, I grabbed Daryl's pants from the floor and threw them in his face. "Get dressed, silly boy," I said, stumbling and giggling my way into the bathroom.

I shut the door and started to take a shower. Over the sound of the hot water running over my body, I could hear someone (it sounded like Rick) say, "Why is Glenn out here in his underwear?"

I heard Glenn laugh.

Daryl said, "Aint ya never played strip poker afore?"

I giggled and continued to wash my body of all the blood dirt and filth of the last few weeks.

I reached up and felt my face, remembering the blood still smeared on my cheek from the night of Amy's death. The thought of that night made a few quick imaged flash through my mind.

Andrea crying over Amy's profusely bleeding body. Daryl holding me as I wept for my lost friend. The tightly packed dirt just in front of the lawn chair I was sitting in before I squeezed my eyes shut and dug my fingers into my scalp to try and block out the sound of the gun shot that rang out shortly after.

I felt some water drip down my face that I wasn't sure had come from the showerhead. I kneeled down, wrapping my arms around myself and crying until I felt like passing out.

I knew I probably shouldn't just pass out in the floor of the shower, so I shut the water off and hopped out, towel-drying myself. I looked at myself in the mirror. Other than some puffy, red crying eyes, I looked one hundred percent better. Clean.

I quickly got dressed in my pajamas (fluffy pajama bottoms and a black tank top) and left the bathroom.

I saw Glenn and Daryl passed out on the floor. Glenn was still in his underwear, but at least Daryl had put his pants back on. They weren't buttoned, but they were on.

Daryl still had the Jack Daniels bottle tucked in the crook of his elbow and his mouth was hanging slightly open. There was a hand thrown over his forehead and the other was resting lightly on his chest.

I smiled down at him. I could hear his deep breathing clearly.

Glenn was in a kind of awkward sleeping position. In one hand he held my SoCo bottle and the other arm was bent behind him. But that wasn't the uncomfortable part. His feet were propped up on the end of the bed and he was laying on his stomach. But because of the angle his propped-up feet put him in, he was pretty much laying on his face. One of his cheeks was pressed hard onto the carpet, making his mouth hang open as soft snores drifted out.

I rolled my eyes with a smile and grabbed both bottles of alcohol from the two, taking a gulp from each before returning them to the floor beside my bed.

I caught sight of Daryl and gave him a quick, soft peck on the cheek, hoping he didn't wake up, before jumping up into the bed and nestling into the comfy bedding.


End file.
